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THE 



LIFE 



OF 



APOLLONIUS OF TYANA, 



TRANSLATED FROM THE GREEK OF 



"PHILOSTRATUS. 



WITH 

NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS, 



BY THE REV. EDWARD BERWICK, 

VICAR OF LE1XLIP IN IRELAND. 



THE FEAR OF OFFENDING FOOLS HAS MADE MANY MEN OF UN- 
DERSTANDING UNHAPPY ; AND THE AMBITION OF APPLAUSE 
HAS MADE MANY GREAT MEN COMMIT GREAT ERRORS. 

Philosophical Visions. 



LONDON: 



PRINTED FOR T. PAYNE, PALL MALL, 
BY J. M'CREERY, BLACK-HORSE-COURI. 

1809. 



fts^ 



,K»* 



ts 



vt<* 



TO THE READER. 



THE Life of Apollonius of Tyana, which is 
now for the first time presented entire to the 
consideration of the English Reader, was com- 
piled by Philostratus about the year of Christ 
210, at the desire of Julia Domna, wife to the 
Emperor Severus. Flaccus Philostratus, the 
writer of it, was the son of Verus, and had the 
title of Sophist conferred on him for his superior 
eloquence. According to some writers he was 
born in the isle of Lemnos, but according to 
others, in Athens, where he taught rhetoric, 
and composed many speeches and ingenious 
tracts. From Athens he passed to Rome, where 
he was soon received into the society of the lite- 
rary men, who then frequented and adorned the 
court of the Empress Julia.— From her, he 
says, he obtained whatever documents had been 
communicated to her by the friends of Apollo- 
nius, relative to his life and opinions, and which, 
at her particular request, he not only revised, but 
embellished in the manner they are at present to 
be found. 



( K ) 

Mr. Gibbon, in speaking of the Empress 
Julia, says, " She applied herself to letters and 
philosophy with some success, and great appli- 
cation ; and was the patroness of every art, and 
the friend of every man of genius." The same 
elegant writer, in speaking of her husband, 
adds, " that he was passionately addicted to the 
vain studies of magic and divination, was deeply 
versed in the interpretation of dreams and 
omens, and perfectly acquainted with the sci- 
ence of judicial astrology." In a court which 
patronized such studies and pursuits, we are not 
surprised to learn that the talents of Philostra- 
tus were encouraged, his skill in rhetoric ap- 
plauded, and the wishes of the Empress obeyed 
with alacrity. A woman like Julia, attached so 
much to letters, was naturally desirous of know- 
ing every circumstance respecting so extraordi- 
nary a person as she might have been informed 
Apollonius was, in whose particular character 
were combined all the leading features and pre- 
vailing sentiments then so fashionable in the 
court of her husband. Philostratus was a pas- 
sionate admirer of Pythagoras, and as such must 
have had great pleasure in bringing into public 
notice and esteem, the character of one who was 
so strict and zealous a follower of the rules and 
maxims of the enlightened Sage of Samos. His 
history of Apollonius he composed in eight 
books, which have been translated at different 
times into Latin ; but the translation of Olearius, 



( # ) 

in the beginning of the last century, is to be pre- 
ferred to all the others, on account of the care 
and fidelity with which it is executed. It was 
translated into Italian so early as the year 1549, 
and printed at Venice by Gabriel Giolito de 
Ferrari. — In 1611, Frederick Morel, at Paris, 
revised and corrected the French translation of 
Blaise de Vigenere of 1609, and published it in 
two volumes quarto, with a very ample com- 
mentary by Artus Thomas Sieur D'Embry. — 
A new translation has lately appeared in French, 
in four volumes duodecimo, dedicated to Cle- 
ment XIV. to which is added a literal transla- 
tion of all the notes that are to be found in the 
English version of the first two books by Mr. 
Charles Blount, in 1680, who, in his preface 
£o the same, says, he had translated the whole, 
but was prevented from publishing, by reason 
of the outcry raised against him of the danger 
which was to follow its publication. The truth 
is, it was considered at the time (but in my opi- 
nion erroneously) as so dangerous an attempt to 
injure the Christian religion, that it was soon 
suppressed, so that few copies of it then got 
abroad. — Yet, notwithstanding the alarm excit- 
ed, it appears to me, that whatever danger was 
to have followed, (of which there was none) 
must have arisen from the peculiar nature of 
the notes with which it is furnished, almost all 
of them being of so deistical a tendency as to 
make it supposed they were written by the fa- 

b 



( 'V ) 

mous Lord Herbert of Cherbury ; and not from 
a faithful translation of the text, which I think 
perfectly harmless. In saying this, I feel my- 
self supported by the sentiments of the judicious 
Dr. Lardner, who, after examining and weigh- 
ing the opinions for and against the tendency of 
the work, supposes it written as a counterpart to 
the life of Pythagoras, and free from any direct 
allusion to the life of Christ.* Even in such 
parts of his work as might be supposed to bear, 
on particular passages in the history of our 
blessed Saviour, neither the language (save in 
one solitary instance) nor the artless simplicity 
of the scriptures, are so much as followed. — 
Nothing can be imagined, says Mr. John Le- 
land, more different than Philostratus's manner 
of writing, stuffed with rhetorical flourishes 
and vain ostentations of learning, is from the 
plain sober narrative <jf the evangelists, which 
hath all the characters of genuine unaffected 
simplicity, and a sincere regard for truth. 

Dr. Lardner observes, he was confirmed in 
his opinion by perusing the judicious reflections 
of Dr. Parker, bishop of Oxford, on the charac- 



* Gibbon allpws that, " tho* ancient stories of Pythagoras 
and Aristeas, the cures performed at the shrine of iEsculapius, 
and the fables related of Apollonius of Tyana, were frequent- 
ly oppose to the miracles of Christ; yet he agrees with Dr. 
Lardner, in thinking, that when Philostratus composed his 
Life of Apollonius, he had no such intention." 



( v ) 

ter of Apollonius, and his history as written by 
Philostratus. * To the above opinions I can 
add those of the learned and liberal compilers 
of the new Biographical Dictionary, in con- 
firmation of my own opinion, who say in their 
account of Apollonius, that Dr. Lardner has 
fully shewn that Philostratus did not write his 
life with any reference to that of Christ, and 
that his design was to exhibit this philosopher 
as a counterpart to Pythagoras. As such, they 
conclude, he is doubtless to be considered, and 
we shall not, I think, pronounce unfairly con- 
cerning him, if we assert that in him were unit- 
ed the characters of both the sage and the im- 
postor. 

From fairly weighing the sentiments of the 
aforesaid learned and judicious scholars, and 
from a careful perusal of the work itself, I agree 
with them in thinking it written after the style 
and manner in which the Life of Pythagoras is 
written ; that a faithful translation of the work 
cannot do the least harm to the Christian reli- 
gion, and that all the supernatural tales* related 



* Accounts of supernatural events found only in historians 
by some ages posterior to the transactions, and of which it is 
evident that the historian could know little more than his 
reader, offer no evidence that is satisfactory or can be de- 
pended on. This judicious observation of Mr. Paley, de- 
serves the utmost attention, as it applies with considerable 

force 



( * ) 

in it are false, and founded on the miracles as- 
cribed to Pythagoras by his fanatical followers. 
Had Lucian written the life of Apollonius, as 
he did that of his pupil, Alexander, the pseudo- 
prophet, little or no alarm would ever have 
been excited in the breast of either Christian or 
Pagan. However, the English reader may now 
form an opinion for himself, and judge of the 
man, and the design Philostratus had in writing 
it : he has, for the first time, an opportunity of 
perusing the whole life in his own language, 
accompanied with such notes and observations, 
as may in some respect tend to illustrate, and 
render it more intelligible. Should it be asked 
why this history should be now given to the 
English reader, after having been so long with- 
held from him, I will first give in' answer the 
reasons which induced Meric Casaubon to think 



force to the miracles ascribed to Apollonius in the following 
solitary history, published by Philostratus above one hundred 
years after] his death, and in which, whether the writer had 
any prior account, depends upon his single unsupported evi- 
dence. Besides, continues the same learned writer, accounts 
of supernatural events published in one country, of what 
passed in a distant country, without any proof that such accounts 
were known, or received at home, can offer no evidence that 
is to be depended on. This distinction, he adds, disposes of 
the aforesaid miracles of Apollonius, most of which are relat- 
ed to have been performed in India, of which no evidence 
remains, that either the miracles ascribed to him, or the 
history of those miracles, were ever heard of in India. 






( vii ) 

it ought to be better known than what it is, and 
next, those which but ostensibly engaged Mr. 
Charles Blount to offer his translation to the 
public. I say but ostensibly, for Blount's real 
design, it is well known, was to use the text 
of Philostratns as a vehicle to convey a deep 
digested series of notes and observations, which, 
in the vain imagination of his heart, he thought 
would injure the Christian religion, but which 
only tended, as all such impotent attacks have 
done, to serve it, and to exalt the character of 
its Divine Author, and humble that of its feeble 
and- wicked opponent: for feeble and wicked 
must that man be, whose real design is to cast 
the slightest reflection on a religion " which 
from Heaven proclaimed peace on earth, and good 
will amongst all its inhabitants." 

Though the books of Philostratus, says Ga- 
saubon, contain many fabulous things, as any man 
may expect from the undertaking, yet they have 
so much truth and variety of ancient learning, 
that I think they deserve a more attentive con- 
sideration than what has fallen to their lot. 
I thought, writes Blount in his Preface, the 
many descriptions in Philostratus of remote 
countries and former customs, so different 
from our own ; the various hints of ancient his- 
tory, wherein our author is esteemed authentic, 
as well as the philosophical discourses on the 
subject of morality, might be not only enter- 
taining, but useful to every reader that perused 



( viii ) 

him. „ Besides the aforesaid reasons, which 1 
deem, independent of others, fully sufficient to 
justify the undertaking at this day, I thought 
the want of such a translation a defect in English 
literature, and in some respects a reflection on 
the liberal and enlightened character of the 
country. I thought it also necessary to lay 
before the English reader an entire translation 
of the whole history of Apollonius, to enable 
him the better to form his opinion of the cha- 
racter of the man, it being the only account of 
him which was referred to about a century after 
its appearance, in preference to all others, by 
Hierocles, who first endeavoured to draw a 
comparison between Christ and Apollonius, and 
which account was fully admitted by Eusebius 
in the reply he made to his foolish and impious 
attack. Next I wished to shew the fallacy of 
the comparison, w r hich could only fairly be 
done by a perusal of the whole life, from which 
I think it will appear, that Apollonius was one 
of those cunning impostors, who, by his supe- 
rior skill, could perform certain wonderful 
things, for the purpose of acquiring character 
and consequence among the vulgar, and that it 
was in the light of a magician he was considered 
by his two contemporaries, Lucian and Apuleius, 
of whom the one says, his false prophet was 
educated in his school, (and from the .pupil we 
may judge of the master) and the other ranks 
him amongst the most celebrated magician*. 



i i 



( * ) 

I have only now to add, that had any English 
translation of the work existed, I should not 
have undertaken the present one, which is sub- 
mitted with the greatest deference to the public, 
in the hopes that it will fully serve to set in its 
true light the character of Apollonius, and to 
wipe away an uncandid insinuation of Mr. Gib- 
bon, who seems glad (as he does on every occa- 
sion) to fix a stigma on the Divine Author of our 
religion : an insinuation which I believe he 
never would have made, had any translation of 
the work been extant in his own language, to 
which the reader might have had an easy access. 
The insinuation I allude to, is couched in a note* 
to the first volume of his Roman History, in 
which he wishes to confound the character of 
our blessed Saviour, with that of an impostor 



* " Apollonius of Tyana," says Gibbon, " was bom about 
the same time as Jesus Christ. His life [that of the former) 
is related in so fabulous a manner by his fanatic disciples, that 
we are at a loss to discover whether he was a sage, or an im- 
postor." 

A sneer, which is but an expression of ludicrous scorn, is 
the favourite and general weapon with which Mr. Gibbon 
throughout his whole history assails the character and religion of 
Christ: but the imbecility of this mode of attack, (for it cannot 
be termed any thing like argument) is always best exposed by a 
simple recital of the real circumstances attending the case against 
which his sneer is directed. I trust the truth of this will appear 
by the following account of the man whom the historian of the 
Roman empire, so unbecomingly, and irreverently, compares 
to that of our blessed Saviour. 



( * ) 

and a magician, though the dissimilarity, in 
every point of view, is so great between the 
two persons, that one is surprised how the 
liberal candour of a gentleman, and a scholar, 
could adopt it, and give it to a discerning pub- 
lic. In fine, if I should succeed in removing 
this unfair and unfounded imputation, I will 
think myself well repaid for the time and trouble 
expended in this work. 

JV. B. Since I wrote the above address to the 
reader, I have read the learned and liberal criti- 
cism of Doctor Douglas, late bishop of Salisbury, 
with which I have been much edified; and though 
a slight difference of opinion exists between his 
lordship and me, respecting the object with 
which Philostratus compiled his history, none 
whatever, I am happy to say, exists respecting 
the character of his hero. 

E. B. 



Esker t near Leixlip, 
September, 1809. 



THE LIFE 

8cc. 



BOOK I.— Contents. 

Observations on the Doctrine of Pythagoras, fyc. — 
Country of Apollonius — his Birth — Education, Pro- 
gress in the Pythagorean Philosophy — Residence in 
the Temple of Esculapius — Death of his parents — 
Goes to Anlioch — Meets Dames at Ninus—Goes to 
Babylon — Interview with King Bardanes — Conver- 
sation with the Magi — Sets out on his journey to 
India. 

CHAP. I. 

1 HEY who commend* Pythagoras the Samian, say o£ 
him, that before his birth in Ionia, he was Euphort^T 
at Troy ; and that after his death at that place, vnich is 
recorded by Homer, he returned again to life. Hiey add, 



* Whoever is desirous to understand fully the cha/aeter of Apollo- 
nius, as given here by Philostratus, should read with care and attention 
all that is written of Pythagoras, of whom he was t strict follower and 
rigorous disciple. The best accounts of Pythagoras, and his phi- 
losophical tenets, are to be found in Diogenes Laertius, Porphyry, 
and Iamblichus, among the ancients ; and in Stanley's Lives of the 
Philosophers, and Brucker's Histoiia Critica among the moderns. 

t Homer, in the 17th book of the Iliad, describes the death of 
Euphorbus, and the simile by which he illustrates his beauty and sud- 
den fall is exquisitely fine. From Porphyry and Iamblichus it appears, 

that 
B 



z 

that he rejected the use of all clothing made from the 
skins of animals, and abstained both from eating and 
sacrificing them. He never polluted with blood the altars 
of the Gods, to whom he offered cakes of honey, and 
frankincense, and hymns ; for such oblations he knew were 
more acceptable to them than whole hecatombs, and the 

\^ sacrificial knife. He conversed with the Gods, and learnt 
^ from them, how men may do what is pleasing to them, 

I and how the contrary. Hence ^he spoke of the nature 
of things as a man inspired: for he said other men 
guessed only of the divine will, but that Apollo had visit- 
ed him and declared his Godhead. Pallas and the Muses, 
he also said, had conversed with him, without declaring 
who they were, and other deities whose names and aspects 
were not as yet known to mortals. Whatever was taught 
by Pythagoras, was observed as a law by his disciples, who 
reverenced him as a man come from Jove; and the 
silence he enjoined was most vigilantly adhered to by them, 
with a zeal which a doctrine so sublime merited; for 
whilst it continued, they heard many things of a divine and 
mysterious nature, which would have been difficult for 
them to retain and comprehend, had they not first learnt 



that Pytihgoras admired the verses so much, that he had them set to 
the harp. His admiration of them probably induced him to say, that 
his soul transmigrated to him from that hero. Pope has well trans- 
lated them. 

' As the young olive, in some sylvan scene, 
' Crown'o. by fresh fountains with eternal green, 

* Lifts the gay head, in snowy flow'rets fair, 
' And plays, and dances to the gentle air j 

* When lo ! a whirlwind from high heaven invades 
' The tender plant, and withers all its shades ; 

' It lies uprooted from its genial bed, 
' A lovely ruin, now defae'd and dead. 

* Thus young, thus beautiful, Enphorbus lay, 

* While the fierce Spartan tore his arms away.* 



that silence* itself was the beginning and rudiment of 
wisdom. This mode of philosophizing, it is said,f Em- 
pedocles of Agrigentum pursued, who says in some of his 
poems, " Farewel, my friends, mortal I shall be no 
more," and also — " A boy I was, then did a maid be- 
come." Besides,^ the ox which he made of honey and 
barley, and sacrificed at Olympia, shews that he approved 
of the system of Pythagoras. Many other things are re- 
lated of the followers of Pythagoras which I think not 
now necessary to notice, as I am anxious to go on with 
my proposed narrative. 



* The to <ri*m<Li \oyoq of Pythagoras is illustrated by what Claudian 
says in speaking of the consulship of Mallius Theodoras, 
" Quicquid Deraocritus risit, dixitque tacendo 
Pythagoras." 

Isocrates acknowledges the force of the above expression, Solomon 
says, " the words of wise men are heard in quiet." 

t For an account of Empedocles see Diogenes Laertius, Stanley's 
lives of the Philosophers, and Brucker's Historia Critica. 

$ Plutarch says Pythagoras sacrificed an ox on the discovery of a 
certain mathematical proposition ; now as we know that Pythagoras 
abstained entirely from the shedding of blood, the ox he sacrificed to 
the Gods on that occasion must have been of the same composition 
with that of Empedocles. Porphyry says, Pythagoras offered an ox 
in sacrifice, not a living ox, but one made of paste. Athenaeus re- 
ports in like manner, that Empedocles, a disciple of Pythagoras, 
having been crowned at the Olympic games, distributed to those who 
were present an ox made of myrrh, incense, and all sorts of aromatic 
drugs. 



B 2 



K> 



CHAP. II. 

APOLLONIUS, who engaged in like pursuits and stu- 
dies, devoted himself to philosophy with a more divine 
enthusiasm than Pythagoras. He vanquished tyrannies, 
and lived in times neither remote nor modem, and yet he 
is not recognised by that true wisdom which he cultivated 
with such a chaste philosophical spirit, and is amongst 
men still mentioned with various praise. Some consider 
him as one of the Magi, because he conversed with the 
wise men of Babylon, and the Brachmans of India, and 
the Gymnosophists of Egypt, and even his wisdom is re- 
viled, as being acquired by means of the magic art ; so 
erroneous are the opinions formed of him. Whereas, 
Empedocles, and Pythagoras, and Democritus, though 
they conversed with the same magi, and advanced many 
paradoxical sentiments, have not fallen under like imputa- 
tion. Even Plato, who travelled into Egypt, and blended 
with his doctrines many opinions collected there from the 
priests and prophets, like a painter who improves his 
sketches with new colouring, incurred not such a suspicion, 
though envied above all men on account of his superior 
wisdom. The faculty Apollonius possessed of foreseeing 
and foretelling many things, should not call in question his 
wisdom, else might Socrates* be arraigned for the infor- 
mation he received from his demon, and Anaxagorasf for 



* Ammianus Marcellinus ranks Apollonius among those eminent 
men who have been assisted by the supernatural aid of a daemon, or 
genius, as Socrates or Numa. 

t Read the life of Anaxagoras in Diogenes Laertius and Stanley. 
Ammianus Marcellinus says, that Anaxagoras, instructed in the science 
of Egypt, foretold the falling of stones from Heaven, and that there 
should be earthquakes, in consequence of the mud which he perceived 
on the surface of the wells. B. 22. c. 16. 



his predictions. For who is ignorant that the latter, during 
the Olympic games, at a time when there was not the least 
appearance of rain, entered the stadium wrapt in a thick 
woollen cloak, under the full conviction of a shower, that 
he foretold the fall of a certain house* that day should be 
turned into night, and that stones should fall from Heaven 
at iEgos-Potamos ;* and does not every one know that 
these things happened according to his predictions ? and 
yet they who ascribe the predictions of Anaxagoras to his 
superior wisdom, act not very consistently in depreciating 
the wisdom of Apollonius, and in saying he performed all 
by the means of magic ?+ I have therefore thought it 
proper to oppose the ignorance of the multitude, and to 
examine minutely the character of the man both as to 
what he said and did, together with the times in which he 
lived — and to mark that peculiar mode of philosophising, 
by which he acquired the reputation of being not only 
under the influence of a demon, but of being divine.^ 
The history I mean to give of the man has been drawn in 
part from the cities wherein he was held in high esteem, 
in part from the temples whose long disused rites he 
restored, in part from what tradition has preserved of him, 
and lastly from his own epistles, which were addressed to 
kings, and sophists, and philosophers — to Eleans, Del- 
phians, Indians, and Egyptians, all written on the subject 
of their deities, countries, morals, and laws : it being his 
constant practice to redress whatever he found wrong. 



* jEgos-Potamos, a river in the Thracian Chersonesus, situate to the 
north of Sestos. Pliny mentions a stone, " ad aegos flumen qui 
etiam nunc ostenditur, magnitudine vehis colore adusto." L. %. c. 58. 
He says Anaxagoras foretold its falling from the sun. 

t Eusebius says, that in his time there were persons who pretended 
to perform magical incantations by invoking of Appollonius. 

% Eusebius, in his refutation of Hierocles cites him ascribing to 
Apollonius a divine and hidden wisdom, by which, and not by magi- 
cal art, he had performed great wonders. 



The most probable account I have been able to collect 
from the above sources, will appear in the following rela- 
tion. 



CHAP. lit 

THERE was a certain man named Damis, who was well 
read in philosophy, a citizen of the ancient Ninus,* who 
became one of the disciples of Apollonius, and wrote the 
account of his travels, wherein he set down his opinions, 
discourses, and predictions. A person nearly allied to 
Damis introduced the empressf Julia Augusta to a know- 
ledge of his commentaries, which till then were not 
known ; as I was a good deal conversant in the imperial 
family from the encouragement given by the empress to 
rhetoric and its professors, she commanded me to trans- 
cribe and revise these commentaries,;); and pay particular 
attention to the style and language ; for the narrative of 
the Ninevite was plain, but not eloquent. To assist me in 
the work, I was fortunate in procuring the book of Maxi- 
mus§ the iEgean, which contained all the actions of 



* I shall speak of Ninus in a future note. 

t Some account of the empress Julia is given in the preface to the 
reader, for further particulars see Gibbon's Roman history, vol. i. 
c. 6. Severus, the husband of Julia, died, A.D. 211, and his wife, 
after experiencing all the vicissitudes of fortune, put an end to her own 
life about the year 218. 

$ They were now, says Mr. Charles Leslie, to be adapted to the 
ears of an empress, who loved rhetoric, alias, romancing, and fine 
stories. Meragenes's Commentaries, adds he, were not so romantic 
as those of Damis, and consequently not so fit for the entertainment of 
an empress, besides, it is supposed Meragenes considered him as a 
magician. 

§ Of Maximus ^Egiensis, and Meragenes, little is known except 
what is found in the text, the writings of the latter were perhaps not 

favorabh 



Apollonius at iEgae, and a transcript of his will, from 
which it appeared how much his philosophy was under 
the influence of a sacred enthusiasm. I also happened to 
meet with the four books of one Meragenes, which were 
not of great value on account of the ignorance of the 
writer. I have now explained the manner of my collecting 
my materials, and the care taken in their compilation. I 
trust the work may do honor to the man who is the sub- 
ject of it, and be of use to the lovers of literature, inas- 
much as it will introduce them to the knowledge of things 
with which they were before unacquainted.* 



favorable to Apollonins, and on that account were not valued by 
Philostratus, who appears through this whole work to be more the 
panegyrist, than the historian of his life. From the accounts given of 
Damis and Meragenes, Lardner is inclined to think that Philostratus 
used only such materials in his history, as were to the advantage of his 
hero. Philostratns's principal author, Damis, is an obscure person, his 
memoirs were unknown, till brought to the empress Julia ; his friend 
who brought them is not named. Meragenes's four books were little 
regarded, probably from not being favorable to his hero. From such 
sources, must not the accounts be uncertain and deserving of little 
credit. Naudaeus, in his history of magic, considers this whole his- 
tory, dressed up as it is by the pen of Philostratus, in the same light, 
as are at present the love-stories and romances which have been 
written for the entertaiment of queens and princesses. 

* But how can things be received, says Lardner, which were not 
known till more than an hundred years after the death of the person 
spoken of. So extremely slight, says Mr. Charles Leslie, is the 
authority on which Philostratus has introduced his history, that some 
learned men have, not without reason, doubted whether there ever 
was such a man as Apollonius. Had he been such a man as he is here 
represented to have been, it is not possible he could have been so 
totally forgotten, as that no mention should have been made of him 
for one hundred years after such extraordinary things were said to 
have been done. Is it possible, that the death of so famous a person 
should not have been greatly noticed ? and his sepulchre honored and 
visited ? 



CHAP. IV. 

APOLLO NIUS was born in Tyana, a town founded 
by Greeks in Cappadocia. He was called Apollonius 
from his father, his family was ancient, and might be 
traced to the original settlers. His fortune was consider- 
able, but the country abounded in riches. Whilst his 
mother was with child of him, Proteus* the Egyptian 
god appeared to her, who, as Homer writes, has the 
power of assuming such a variety of shapes. The woman 
without being much alarmed, asked him what she should 
bring forth ? to which he replied, Thou shalt bring forth 
me. This you may suppose excited her curiosity to ask 
again who he was, and he said the Egyptian god Proteus. 
But why need I mention the great wisdom of Proteus to 
those who have learnt from the poets his various and 
versatile transformations, the great difficulty in seizing 
him, and how he seemed not only to know, but to fore- 
know all things. It is however necessary to mention him, 
since it will appear in the sequel of this history, that 
Apollonius had a foreknowledge of what was to come to 
pass, much above Proteus; and was wont to solve many 
things which were difficult, and almost impossible to human 
capacity, and particularly at the time when he seemed to 
be most reduced to his ne plus ultra.f 



* Homer gives us a very particular account of Proteus in the 4th 
book of his Odyssey. His story, which has been always considered 
as a subject of just ridicule by the dealers in fiction, is agreeably laughed 
at by Lucian in his Dialogues. 

t On which Du Pin observes, " Ne voit-on pas clairement que cette 
apparition de Protle a la mere d'Apollone, est une fable de l'invention 
de Philostrate." 



CHAP. V. 

APOLLON1US is said to have been born in a certain 
meadow, near which stands a temple dedicated to him. 
Of the manner of his birth* no one should be ignorant. 
When his mother was near the time of her delivery, she 
was warned in a dream to go and gather flowers in a 
meadow; when she came there, whilst her maidens 
were dispersed up and down employed in their several 
amusements, she fell asleep on the grass. In this situ- 
ation a flock of swansi* that was feeding in the meadow, 
formed a chorus around her, and clapping their wings, as 
their custom is, sung in unison, all the time the air was 
fanned by a gentle zephyr. The singing of the birds 



* Born about the latter end of the reign of Augustus. 
t The idea of swans singing at the birth of Apollonius, is taken from 
Callimachus's hymn in Delum, in which these poetical birds perform 
the same office for Latona. The following version comes from the pen 
of Mr. Boyd, the elegant translator of Dante — whose character is too 
well known in the literary world to require any tiling more than my 
thanks. — And 

" Thanks to men 
Of noble minds is honourable meed." — 

She spoke — the swans, Apollo's plumy choir, 

Upsoaring from Pactolus, with loud clang 

Circled the happy island. Seven times round 

They skimm'd the shores, as oft the swelling strain 

Floated melodious in the winnow'd breeze. 

Accordant to Latoua's wailing cries 

They chanted, first in favor with the maids 

Of Pindus, and in harmony excelling 

All the plum'd choiristers that wing the winds. 

'Twas thence for every lay that chear'd the pangs 

Of his sad mother, Phoebus to his lyre 

Fixt a respondent chord ; again they rais'd 

The heavenly concert, and the Lord of day 

In jubilee was born. Sweet sung the nymphs 

Symphonious, and the deep flood's solemn base, 

Joined in full chorus to Lucina's praise. Boyd. 



10 

caused her to start out of her sleep, and at that moment 
she was delivered of a son — premature labours being 
sometimes the effects of sudden alarms. The natives 
of the place affirm, that at the instant of her deliver), 
a thunderbolt which seemed ready to fall on the 
ground, rose aloft, and suddenly disappeared. By this 
the Gods prefigured, I think, the splendor of the child, 
his superiority over earthly beings, his intercourse with 
them, and what he was to do when arrived to man^ 
hood. 



CHAP. VI. 

IN the vicinity of Tyana is a fountain consecrated to 
Jupiter, whose water is esteemed the water of oaths, and is 
called by the natives Asbamoean. # Its source is cold, 
but it bubbles up as a cauldron does over a fire. The 
water of this fountain is mild and sweet to the taste of all 
who respect an oath, but to all who do not, is a present 
punishment, by the manner in which it affects the eyes, 
and hands, and feet, and by the dropsies and consumptions 
which are said to be the consequence of drinking it. The 
guilty are not able to leave it, but there are detained, 

* Aqua Asbamcea — Ammianus Marcelliuus confirms the reading 
of Asbamcea in book 23, chap. 7, of his history. u Apud Asbamai 
quoque Jovis templum in Cappadocia, ubi amplissimus tile Philosophus 
Apollonius traditur natus, prope oppidum Tyana stagno effluens fons 
cernitur,qui magnitudine aquaruminflatus seseque resorbens, numquam 
extra margines intumescit." 

Diodorus Siculus speaks of certain sulphureous springs at Palica in 
Sicily, which were something of the same nature with those mentioned in 
the text, he says the natives swore by their waters in the most solemn 
manner, and adds, that adjoining to them stood the temple of Palici, 
indigenous divinities, who were supposed to punish perjury. Trials by 
fire and water were long in use, especially, even after the establishment 
of Christianity. 



11 

lamentiug and confessing their sins.* All the people of 
the country say that Apollonius was the son of Jupiter, 
but he constantly called himself the son of Apol- 
lonius. 



CHAP. VII. 

WHEN he grew up,+ and was capable of instruction, 
he gave signs of great strength of memory and persevering 
application. He used the attic dialect, and never suffered 
his speech to be corrupted by the place of his birth. The 
eyes of all were attracted by his beauty. When .he was 
fourteen years of age his father carried him to Tarsus,J 
and committed him to the care of Euthydemus the Phe- 
nician, a celebrated rhetorician. Apollonius became 
attached to his master, but thought the manners of the 
town absurd, and not suited to philosophical pursuits, 
inasmuch as the people of it were insolent scoffers — ad- 
dicted to pleasure, and more passionately fond of fine 
clothes, than the Athenians ever were of philosophy. 
The Cydnus § runs through it, on whose banks the citi- 



* Cette relation, says Du Pin, est une episode qui n'a rien de com- 
mun avec la vie d'Apollone ; mais qui fait voir que Philostrate s'est 
etudie a faire entrer dans son histoire tout ce qu'il a pu ap- 
prendre de marveilleux, sans se soucir qu'il fut veritable. 

t Here is an imitation of Pythagoras, of whom the same is said by 
the writers of his life. 

t Tarsus, the metropolis of Cilicia, called by Strabo the Mother of 
Cities, from its great learning, and which St. Paul says, was no mean 
city. 

§ The Cydnus runs through Tarsus, and falls into the sea about a 
mile from its walls. 

An te, Cydne, tacitis qui leniter undis 

Coeruleis placidus per vada serpis aquis? Ti bullus. 



10. 

zens are wont to sit like water-fowl ; Apollonius wrote 
them a letter, in which he desired them to cease intoxi- 
cating themselves with water. On obtaining his father's 
permission he retired with his master to iEgae,* a town 
in the neighbourhood of Tarsus, where he found a tran- 
quillity more adapted to science, and studies more suitable 
to his years ; besides a temple of Esculapius, where the 
God sometimes shewed himself to his votaries, and here he 
enjoyed the conversation of the disciples of Plato, and 
Chrysippus, and Aristotle. He listened to, but did not 
contemn the opinions of Epicurus. Those of Pythagoras 
he embraced with an ineffable zeal, though his master was 
not well read in the discipline of that philosopher, nor 
devoted to any efficient study. He was of an amorous 
temperament, and fond of good living, his manner of life 
was formed according to the doctrine of Epicurus, and 
his name was Euxenus, born in Heraclea, a town of Pon- 
tus. He knew some of the sayings — of Pythagoras, as 
birds know what they are taught by men. For there are 
some birds that can say^«^ E , and ev wpotTrs, and Ztvq ^suq f 
and such like phrases of compliment — but know not what 
they say, neither do they mean by them any kindness to 
men, but only utter them from being taught such a certain 
modulation of sounds. As the young eagle never quits 
the side of its parent, when learning to fly; but grown 
stronger, assumes a bolder flight, sometimes soaring obove 
her, and sometimes skimming along the ground, lured by 
the scent of prey ; so did Apollonius, whilst a bov, submit 
to the authority of Euxenus, and was guided by his advice 



* JEgaD, a maritime town of Cilicia, situate at the mouth of the river 
Pyramus, and not far from Tarsus, in which was a temple consecrated 
to the God Esculapius, which had a regular establishment of priests 
and ceremonies, and was famous through all the country for mira- 
culous cures performed on sick persons by the God of Health. 






IS 

in the ways of knowledge* But when arrived at the age 
of sixteen, he became an enthusiastic disciple of Pytha- 
goras, and a zealous admirer of his doctrine, winged 
thereto by a superior intelligei ce. Nevertheless, he always 
continued to respect Euxenus, and as a proof of his re- 
gard, gave him a house which his father purchased for 
him, with a garden and fountains belonging to it, at the 
same time saying, " live you in what manner you please," 
but for me, " I shall live after the manner of Pytha- 



CHAP. VIII. 

FROM this declaration,*]- Euxenus naturally supposed 
Apollonius had higher objects in view, and one day he 
asked him how he intended to begin his course of life, to 
which he replied, he would begin like physicians, who by 
means of purifying the human body, prevent distempers 
in some, and cure them in others. After this avowal he 
declined eating any thing which had life, from an idea of 
its being impure, and capable of weakening the under- 
standing. He lived on fruits and vegetables, declaring that 
the productions of the earth were alone pure. He allowed 
that wine was a pure beverage, as produced from a tree 
not injurious to man. Howbeit, he reckoned it adverse to 
a composed state of mind by reason of the power it pos- 
sessed of disturbing the divine particle of air of which it is 



* In this account, Apollonius is drawn by Philostratus in perfect 
resemblance of Pythagoras. 

t The course of life laid down by Apollonius in this chapter, and 
to which he adhered throughout, is exactly conformable to what was 
enjoined by Pythagoras to his disciples. 



14 

formed. After making this regulation in his mode of diet, 
he set about an alteration in his dress. He went bare- 
footed, clothed himself in linen, and rejected the use of 
all garments made from living creatures. He next let his 
hair grow, and spent most of his time in the temple of 
Esculapius,* all the officers of which were astonished at 
his conduct, and even the God himself sometimes accosted 
the officiating priest, and said he had pleasure in perform- 
ing his cures in the presence of such a witness as Apollo- 
nius. His fame soon spread far and near, so that the 
Cilicians, and all the dwellers in and about the country, 
came and visited him ; and the saying of the Cilicians, 
" Whither run you so fast?" " Is it to see the young man?** 
first applied on this occasion, obtained the authority of 
becoming proverbial. 



CHAP. IX. 

IN writing the life of a man who was in some estimation 
with the Gods, I think it not foreign to my purpose to 
mention a transaction which took place in the temple. A 
young Assyrian happened to visit Esculapius, who during 
his illness lived in a state of great luxury. He spent his 



* Esculapius rejoiced to have Apollonius a witness of his cures, that 
is, as Blount observes, the priests of the temple were exceeding glad 
to have so crafty a man as Apollonius in collusion with them. In the 
temples of Esculapius, all kinds of diseases were believed to be pub- 
lickly cured by the pretended help of that deity :^ in proof of which 
there were erected in each temple columns, or tables of brass, or 
marble, on which a distinct narrative of each particular cure was in- 
scribed. This account is confirmed by Pausanias and Strabo, and 
thews that no school could have been better adapted for the education 
of an impostor, than a temple of Esculapius. 



15 

life, or rather I would say, he consumed his life, in 
drinking. This youth was attacked with a dropsy, and 
from the pleasure he had in inebriating himself, neglected 
every remedy to be applied in the way of exsiccation. 
This was the reason why Esculapius overlooked him, and 
did not favor him with a dream.* On the youth's com- 
plaining of this usage, the God appeared to him, and 
said, " if thou wilt consult Apollonius, thou shalt be well." 
In consequence of this, the young man waited on Apol- 
lonius, and asked what benefit can I receive from your 
wisdom, for to you Esculapius has commanded me to 
make my application. That, answered Apollonius, which 
can be of most service to you in your present condition : 
and is not health that which you stand most in need of ? 
Certainly said the youth, and is what Esculapius promised, 
but has not performed. Take care of what you say, said 
Apollonius. The God bestows health on all who are 
willing to receive it, but you on the contrary, feed your 
disease. You live in total subjection to your appetite, 
and overload with delicacies a weak and dropsical con- 
stitution, adding clay to water. Here Apollonius shewed a 
knowledge above that of Heraclitus,+ who when attacked 
with a similar disease, said, he required the aid of one who 
could extract dryness from humidity, words of dark and 
difficult meaning. Whereas Apollonius, after a clear de- 



* To understand this, the reader must be informed, that for the 
recovery from sickness, the ancients used to bring the patient into the 
temple of Esculapius, where he was to compose himself on a 
couch, and the God of the place was supposed to visit him in his 
sleep. Consequently, whatever the sick person dreamed of, that 
was thought to be the remedy prescribed by Esculapius for his re- 
covery. 

t See the life of Heraclitns in Stanley, with the account of his last 
illness, and his two epistles to Amphidamas. 



16 

claration of his opinion, restored the Assyrian to 
health * 



CHAP. X. 

APOLLON1US on a particular occasion, beholding 
much blood sprinkled on the altars, and many sacrifices 
laid thereon, together with several Egyptian oxen, and 
swine of immense size slain ; observing the officers em- 
ployed, some in flaying them, and others cutting them 
in pieces, also two consecrated bowls of gold filled with 
the most precious stones of India: when he considered 
what he saw, he said to the priest, what is the meaning 
of all this ? I suppose some great man is paying his court 
to the deity. You will be more surprised, I think, said 
the priest, when I tell you that the man has not yet pre- 
ferred his petition, nor stayed his fixed time, nor received 
benefit from the God, nor in short obtained any one of 
the things for which he is come, (he came I. think but 
yesterday) and yet he sacrifices with so much generosity. 
He has even promised to make richer, and more splendid 
presents, provided Esculapius grants the prayer of his 
petition. I understand he is rich, and has greater posses- 
sions in Cilicia, than all the rest of the Cilicians besides : 
and the request I understand which he makes, is, that the 
God will restore him the eye he has lost. Apollonius 
fixing his eyes on the ground, (as his manner was in his 
old age) asked what his name was ? which, when he heard, 



* He instructed him, that the God always bestowed health upon 
those who were willing to receive it, and by persuading him to prac- 
tise abstinence, he cured his disease. Here he attempted nothing 
miraculous, but merely employed the authority of the God in enforcing 
sound morality. 



17 

iie said, I think the man should not be admitted into the 
temple, for he is unclean, and met widi the accident in a 
bad cause. I am of opinion that the bare circumstance of 
his making such costly sacrifices before the granting of 
his request, proves not so much the honest sacrificer, as 
one who wishes to deprecate the wrath of Heaven for 
some enormous offence. Such was the discourse of 
Apollonius. But Esculapius appearing by night to the 
priest, said, let both him and his offerings depart together ; 
for he is not deserving of the eye which remains . # When 
the priest made inquiries concerning him, he was informed 
that he was married to a woman who had a daughter by a 
former husband, that he had fallen in love with his step- 
daughter, with whom he lived in most scandalous com- 
merce; that her mother, as soon as she discovered the 
intrigue, surprised the two in bed, and with a needle 
put out both the eyes of her daughter, and one of her 
husband. 



CHAP. XI. 

IN this way Apollonius shewed the propriety of offering- 
such sacrifices, and making such presents, as should not ex 
ceed the bounds of moderation. When it was no>-" 



* I agree with Dr. Lardner in thinking that the cure ** ras a° ove 
their ability. Hence the patient was dismissed as a pi & ne wretch, 
unworthy of cure. Apollonius dismissed him as unwor»»y °f admission 
into the temple ; at the same time instructing the people who fl <> cked 
thither, ihat he who comes to the temples of the all-seeing Gods, should 
pray, " Ye Gods, grant unto us that which is fit we should receive," 
and that the wicked, though they presented to the Gods the wealth of 
the Indies, would be rejected, because they make their offerings 
not to honour the Deity, but to purchase redemption from deserved 
punishment. 

c 



18 

abroad, that the request of the Cilician was rejected, 
many people flocked to the temple. Then Apollonius 
asked the priest whether the Gods were just? who replied, 
Most just. And are they intelligent ? What, said the priest, 
can be more intelligent than God ? Apollonius proceeded, 
Are they acquainted with the affairs of men or not? 
Herein, said the priest, the Gods most excel mortals, who 
by reason of their manifold infirmities are not acquainted 
with their own affairs ; but to the Gods alone it belongeth 
not only to know their own affairs, but the affairs ot 
men likewise. Well and truly answered, O priest ! said 
Apollonius. Seeing then it is allowed the Gods know 
all things, I think that he who approaches them with 
a good conscience should pray after this wise, " O ye 
Gods, grant what is convenient for me !" Consequently, 
continued Apollonius, good things are due to the good, 
and the contrary to the wicked. Hence the Gods, who 
always act right, send away him whom they find to be 
of a sound mind and free from sin, crowned not with 
crowns of gold, but with all manner of good things ; and him 
whom they discover to be corrupt and polluted with vice, 
they give over to punishment, being the more offend- 
ed with him for presuming to approach their temples 
Wiscious of his own unworthiness. After having thus 
S P v en, he turned towards Esculapius and said, you, Es- 
cula^g^ exercise a philosophy at once ineffable and be- 
coming vourself, not suffering the wicked to come near 
thy shrill**^ even were they to bring with them the 
treasures o± India and Sardis; and this prohibition is given 
from knowing that such supplicants do not sacrifice and 
burn incense from reverence to the Gods, but from the 
selfish motive of making atonement for their own sins, to 
which you will never consent from the love you bear to 
justice. Many other philosophical discourses of this kind 
wexe held by Apollonius whilst he was but a youth. 



19 



CHAP. XII. 

ALL this happened whilst Apollonius remained at iEga?, 
to which may be added what follows. Cilicia was then 
governed by a man of infamous conduct, whose amorous 
inclinations were of the most detestable kind. No sooner 
was he informed of the beauty of Apollonius, than he laid 
aside the business in which he was engaged (he was then 
holding a court at Tarsus) and made all the haste he could 
to iEgae, where on his arrival he pretended illness, and 
gave out he came to consult the God. The moment he 
saw Apollonius, he accosted him when walking alone, and 
said, I pray thee to recommend me to the God. What 
necessity is there for my recommending you, said Apollo- 
nius, if you are good : for such as are good, the Gods 
love without the intercession of any advocate. But said 
the ruler, the God, O Apollonius, has made you his 
guest, and not me. Then said Apollonius, the virtue I 
have exercised as far as a young man is capable, has re- 
conciled to me the God whose servant and companion I 
am : if you make virtue the study of your life, you may 
with equal boldness draw near to the God and ask whatever 
you please. I will do, said he, as you desire, if I am first 
permitted to ask one favor of you. And what is that, said 
Apollonius? It is that favour, replied the ruler, which 
alone can be asked of the beautiful, and which is, that they 
may grant the participation of their beauty to others, and 
not envy them the enjoyment of their persons. All this he 
uttered with the most vile tokens of a corrupt and deprav- 
ed appetite. On this, Apollonius regarding him with a 
most stern countenance, cried out, " Wretch, thou art 
mad. But the other, who only listened to the violence of 
his passion, threatened to cut off his head. At which 

c 8 



20 

Apollonius smiling, said, that day.* Three days after- 
wards this infamous wretch was slain by the hands of the 
public executioner on the highway, for being privy to a con- 
spiracy formed by Archelausf king of Cappadocia, against 
the Romans. These and many other things of like kind 
were written by Maximus the iEgaean, who for his repu- 
tation in eloquence, was deemed worthy of being appointed 
one of the emperor's secretaries. 



CHAP. XIII. 

AS soon as he heard of the death of his father, he has- 
tened to Tyana, and there, with his own hands, interred 
him near the tomb of his mother, who died some time before. 
The fortune left was considerable, which he divided with 
his elder brother, who was very dissipated, and much given 
to wine. The elder was in his twenty- third year, J a period 
of life which exempted him from the care of guardians, 
and Apollonius in his twentieth year, and of course still 
under their protection. After this he returned to iEgae, 
where during his stay he changed the temple of Esculapius 
into a Lyceum and Academy, in which resounded all man- 



* " O that day" — tkis expression, as well here, as throughout this 
history, always relates to the time to come. 

t Archelaus, after swaying the sceptre of Cappadocia above 50 years, 
was at last arraigned before the senate, probably for the conspiracy 
alluded to in the text, and though the charge was unfounded, he died 
soon after of a broken heart, in the reign of Tiberius. Tacitus, an. b. 
ii. c. 42. A. D. 17 — Apollonius was now in his twentieth year. 

$ The age of one and twenty freed youth from the power of masters 
and tutors, which makes Philostratussay, that Apollonius's brother being 
arrived to the age of twenty three, was exempted from the jurisdiction 
of a tutor. 



21 

ner of philosophical disputation. When he became of 
age, and his own master, he returned to Tyana, where it 
was hinted to him by a friend, that he ought to reform his 
brother. I fear, said Apollonius, it would look like ar- 
rogance in me, who am the younger, were I to presume to 
correct the elder ; however, as far as it is in my power, I 
will try to do it. To this end he divided with his brother 
half his own inheritance, saying, that he wanted much, and 
himself little, and then in pursuance of his plan, he led 
him by degrees to the necessity of submitting to advice. 
Our father, said Apollonius, is dead, who used to be our 
instructor. What else remains now than that of our con- 
sulting each other's interest and happiness. If I offend in 
any thing, I request you may advise me, and I will correct 
whatever is wrong : and if you offend, I hope you will 
yield to my advice.* By such gentle treatment, Apollonius, 
like those who break wild and stubborn colts, first made 
him subject to obedience, and by degrees prevailed on 
him to part with his vices, of which he had full share of 
whatever were fashionable, as gaming, drinking, &c. to 
which were added a foolish admiration of his hair, which 
he used to dye, and an insolent and haughty air in his 
manner of walking. After this success with his brother, 



* In this advice, which Apollonius gives to his brother, he points out 
the true way of conveying it with profit, for such is the nature of the 
mind, that it hates being passive in receiving admonition, and the 
generality of mankind do not easily brook the idea of the inferiority 
which is implied in listening patiently to preceptive lectures. There 
seldom is better advice given to those who would commence advisers 
themselves, than this practice of Apollonius, who takes the surest 
method of conciliating his brother's affections by requesting advice 
from him. In proportion as we are supposed deficient in wisdom, 
(a supposition on which every unskilful monitor proceeds) so far we 
resent the awkward attempt of the self-constituted dogmatical pre- 
ceptor. 



'22 

he turned his thoughts to the conversion of his other rela- 
tions, and to render them more attentive to what he said, 
he bestowed the remainder of his fortune on such of them 
as stood most in need of it, stiir however reserving what 
was sufficient for his own use. He was wont to say, that 
Anaxagoras* the Clazomenian, who left his lands to be 
eaten up by his sheep and oxen, read philosophy to beasts 
rather than men : and that Crates the Theban, who cast 
his money into the sea, profited neither man nor beast. 
The saying of Pythagoras, which was so much celebrated, 
" that a man should have no connexion except with his 
own wife/' was intended, Apollonius said, for the use of 
other men, and not for him, as he was determined never 
to marry, nor have any commerce whatever with the fair 
sex. By laying this restraint on his passions, he was su- 
perior to Sophocles, who, when old, said he had got rid 
of a furious master. Whereas Apollonius, by temperance 
and virtue, subdued the wild beast in his youth, and in the 
vigor of life triumphed over the tyrant. Yet some still 
accuse him of sacrificing to Venus, and of indulging in the 
pleasures of love, adding, that he passed a whole year in 
Scythia for that purpose. The truth is, he never went to 
that country, nor was ever known to be enslaved to love. 
Even Euphrates, though he has brought many false ac- 
cusations against him, as we shall shew in the sequel, 
never once accused him of incontinency. This Euphrates 
had matter of variance with Apollonius, because he laughed 
at him for his fondness for money, and endeavoured to 
withdraw him from filthy lucre, and the making a merchan- 
dize of his wisdom. But of these matters let us not treat 
till a more convenient time. s 



* Suidas affirms, Anaxagoras left his ground to sheep and camels to 
be eaten up ; and therefore Apollonius said, he read philosophy to 
beasts, rather than men. Stanley's History of Philosophy. 



25 



CHAP. XIV. 

EUXENUS once asked Apollonius why he did not com- 
mit his thoughts to writing, particularly as he possessed 
such a fund of philosophical knowledge, and was used to 
such a popular and approved stile of speaking. To which 
he answered, that he had not exercised silence,* and from 
that time forward he began to put it in practice. He 
laid a restraint on his tongue, but he read much with his 
eyes, and comprehended much by his understanding, and 
committed all to memory, by the exercise of which, at the 
age of an hundred, he far excelled Simonides. There 
was a hymn addressed to memory, and composed by 
Simonides,*!* which used to be sung by him, in which the 
author says, " that time causes all things to fade away, but 
that time itself never fades, or grows old, being made im- 
mortal by memory." The manner he used in expressing 
his sentiments during his silence, had something interesting 
and graceful in it, inasmuch as his eyes and hands, and 
the motions of his head, made significant answers to what- 
ever was said. He never seemed morose, or out of 



* As a true disciple of Pythagoras, he observed the five years silence, 
notwithstanding the great difficulty with which it was attended. It is 
said that Numa, king of Rome, who knew the advantage of silence, 
commanded the Romans particularly to honour one of the muses under 
the name of the Silent Muse. 

t Simonides of Ceos, the son of Leoprepes, is reported to have first 
inveuted an artificial memory. See Cic. de Oratore I. ii. c. 86. He 
discovered that it was order chiefly which threw a light on memory. 
There are some persons who have said, that Simonides had taken medi- 
cines to procure a strong memory, and that they produced that effect. 
Mr. Hume remarks, that the faculty of memory was much more valued 
in ancient times than at present ; and that there is scarce any great 
genius celebrated in antiquity who is not celebrated for this talent, and 
itis enumerated by Cicero amongst the sublime qualities of Ca?sar. 



84 

spirits, and always preserved an even placid temper. He 
was wont to say, that this kind of life, which he passed for 
the space of five years, was often very irksome to him, foras- 
much as during it, he had many things to say, which he 
did not say ; heard many things of a disagreeable nature 
which he afTected not to hear ; and when provoked to 
anger, could only say to himself — 

" Alas poor sufPring heart,* support the pain 

" Of woundedJionour, and thy rage sustain." Pope. 

In this way he passed over with a dignified silence many 
injurious things uttered against him. 



CHAP. XV. 

THE period of his silence was passed partly in Pamphy- 
lia and partly in Cilicia. Though he travelled through 
countries whose manners were corrupt and effeminate, he 
never uttered a word ; no, not even a murmur escaped his 
lips. Whenever he entered a town, which happened to 
be in a state of noise and uproar (and many were so on 
account of the vain shews and illaudable spectacles exhi- 
bited in them) he always pressed forward into the croud, 
where presenting himself, he shewed by his countenance, 
and the waving of his hand,f the reproof he intended to 
express : the consequence was, the tumult ceased, and all 
kept a silence, as if engaged in the most mysterious cere- 
monies of religion. But little merit he took to himself 
for preserving peace amongst men clamorous only about 



* Homer, Odyssey. B. xx. 1. 18. 

t The Reverend Gilbert Austin, in his ingenious dissertation on Rhe- 
torical Delivery, has adduced this waving of Apollonius's hand, as an 
argument to prove the effects of the eloquence of the hand, without 
the aid of language. 



0,5 

horses and pantomimes ; for they who are inclined to riot 
on such accounts, whenever a man of gravity appears, 
blush and condemn themselves, and soon return to their 
right mind.* But the matter is very different, when a city 
sore oppressed with famine, is to be appeased by mild and 
persuasive language, and to be disarmed of its anger ; and 
yet in the instance which I am going to mention, the 
silence of Apollonius prevailed with a people who were 
enraged, and well disposed to mutiny. On coming into 
Aspendus, a city of Pamphylia (it is situate on the banks of 
the river Eurymedon, and holds the third rank among the 
cities of the country) he found the inhabitants existing on 
whatever pulse could be purchased, and whatever other 
things necessity compelled them to use for the support of 
life. All the corn was hoarded up by the more wealthy, 
in order that they might sell it out to foreigners at what- 
ever price they might please to put upon it. The people 
both young and old were stirred up against the governor, 
and were preparing to burn him alive, if even found at the 
feet of the statuesf of Tiberius, which were then more 



* Turn pictate gravem, ac mentis si forte virum quem 
Conspexere, silent, arrectisque auribus adstant. 
Me regit dictis animos, ac pectora mulcet. Virgil. 

Such a one must speak, says Bayle, if he hopes to stop the fury of 
a mutinous people. But here Apollonius had no need of words, his 
Pythagorean silence did all that the finest figures of oratory could 
effect. His talent was as different from that of Virgil's pious orator, 
as a mummer's from a wise justice of peace. 

" If some grave Sire appears amid the strife, 
" In morals strict, and innocence of life, 
" All stand attentive j. while the sage controls 
u Their wrath, and calms the tumult of their souls." 
t Tacitus says, that the statues of the Caesars were a sanctuary, 
where the assassins of every honest name obtained protection, and 
that slaves, after lifting their hands against their masters, found an 
asylum— An. b. iii. ch. 36. Suetonius says, this kind of process grew 
to such a height, that it became capital for a man to beat his slave, or 
change cloaths near the statue of Augustus, &c. Tib. c. 58. 



26 

feared, and afforded greater security, than the statues of 
Jupiter at Olyinpia, insomuch that a man, in his reign, was 
accused of impiety for beating a slave who happened to 
have in his possession but a silver drachma stamped with 
the emperor's image. Apollonius, approaching the gover- 
nor, asked him by waving his hand, what was the matter ? 
who replied, that he was guilty of no injustice, that 
he was wronged along with the people, and must perish 
with them if not allowed to speak. Then Apollonius, 
turning to the populace; shewed by a sign, that the 
governor must be heard. On which an immediate 
silence ensued, the people stood in awe of Apollonius, 
and the fire was replaced on the altars which were pre- 
pared for sacrifice. When the governor saw this, he took 
courage, and cried out, " It is this, and that man (mention- 
ing several citizens by name) who have produced the 
present scarcity, it is they who have hoarded up the corn, 
which at present is concealed in different parts of the 
country. When the Aspendians heard this, they began to 
stir up each other to sally forth into the country, and 
take it by force ; but Apollonius by a sign prevailed on 
them not to act so ; he advised them to summon the 
guilty, and take the corn from them with their own con- 
sent. As soon as the monopolisers arrived, he was almost 
tempted to break through his silence, moved thereto by 
the tears of the multitude : for the women and children 
flocked together, and even the old men wept, as if just 
ready to drop down with hunger. However, his respect 
for his law of silence had effect, and he wrote on a table t 
the reproof he wished to convey, and gave it to the go- 
vernor to read aloud. 

APOLLONIUS 
To the monopolisers of corn in Aspendus, 

GREETING; 

tl The earth is the common mother of all, for she is 
" just. You are unjust, for you have made her only the 



" mother of yourselves : and if you will not cease from 
" acting thus, I will not suffer you to remain upon 
" her." 

Intimidated by these words, they filled the market with 
grain, and the city recovered from its distress.* 



CHAP. XVI. 

APOLLONIUS, as soon as he fulfilled his law of silence, 
came to Antioch, sir-named the great, and entered the 
temple of Apollo Daphneus,^ to whom the Assyrians ap- 
ply the Arcadian fable, saying that Daphne, the daughter 
of Ladon, was metamorphosed in this place ; for they have 
a river called Ladon, and the laurel into which, it is said, 
the virgin Daphne was changed, and which is held by 
them in high estimation. Cypress trees of an immense 
size grow round the temple, and the country abounds in 
refreshing springs of water, wherein Apollo is accustomed 
to bathe. The soil here is that which first produced the 
cypress, in commemoration of the Assyrian youth Cypa- 
rissus, and the beauty of the tree gives credit to the 
change. I fear I may be considered as not treating my 



* " Quelque apparence qu' il y ait que tout cela est de l'invention de 
Philostrate, en supposant que la chose est arrivee comrae il la raconte, 
elle prouve seulement qu' Apollone etoit un homme adroit et prudent, 
et qui avoit des manieres propres a s'insinuer dans l'esprit du peu- 
ple."— Du Pin.— L'Histoire D'Apollone. 

t From the text it might be supposed that the temple of Daphne 
was in Antioch, when it was in fact five miles distant from it. For an 
account of the temple, and the sacred grove, see Gibbon, who has 
described both iu his usual style of luminous eloquence. The words of 
Ammianus Marcellinus relative to the situation of Daphne are, " Tunc 
apud Dapluieu amoenum illud & ambitiosum Antiochiae Suburba- 
num, &c. 



28 

readers with sufficient respect, by alluding to such puerile 
stories, but they are only noticed for what is to follow. 
Apollonius perceiving that this temple stood in a pleasant 
situation, but that no rational worship was performed in 
it ; and that it was in the possession of a people semi- 
barbarous, and enemies of all science, he said, O Apollo, 
change these mutes into trees, that they at least may make 
some noise like the cypresses." Also, when he saw how 
still and noiseless were the fountains, he said, " The torpid 
silence that reigns in this place, does not even suffer the 
waters to murmur." Then turning his eyes to the Ladon, 
he cried, " not only was thy daughter changed, but thou 
thyself from having been a Greek and an Arcadian, art 
become a barbarian." Afterwards, when he was resolved 
to discourse with them, he avoided all promiscuous multi- 
tudes, and places of much resort, saying, it was not the 
company of illiterate rustics he sought, but that of men. 
In consequence of this determination he frequented places 
more retired, and made his abode in whatever temples he 
found open. At sun-rise he performed apart from all, 
certain ceremonies, which he communicated only to those 
who had exercised a quadrennial . silence. ' Whenever he 
visited a city which happened to be of Greek origin, and 
was in possession of an established code of religious wor- 
ship, he called together the priests, and discoursed to them 
concerning the nature of their Gods; and if he found 
they had departed from their usual forms, he always set 
them right. But when he came to a city whose religious 
rites and customs were barbarous, and different from 
others, he enquired by whom they were established, and 
for what they were intended : and afterwards in what man- 
ner they were observed, at the same time suggesting what- 
ever occurred to him as better and more becoming. 
Next he visited his followers, and commanded them to ask 
what they pleased, telling them that they who cultivated 
philosophy in the manner he enjoined, should in the morn- 



29 

ing converse with the Gods, at mid-day concerning the 
Gods, and in the evening of human affairs. When he 
had answered all the questions proposed by his friends, and 
talked as much as he thought sufficient, he addressed the 
multitude, with whom he always discoursed in the evening, 
but never before noon. After he ended these discourses, 
he had himself anointed and rubbed, and then he plunged 
into the cold bath, saying, that hot baths were the old age 
of men. To the people of Antioch who were forbidden 
the use of the hot baths, on account of their crimes, he 
said, that the emperor had given them long life for their 
wickedness; and to the Ephesians who were going to stone 
the master of the baths for not having made them hot 
enough, he once replied, you accuse the master of the 
baths for your not bathing to your satisfaction, but I ac- 
cuse you for your bathing at all. 



CHAP. XVII. 

APOLLONIUS used a style of speaking not elevated, 
nor swoln with the language of poetry, nor yet one too 
refined, nor too Attic ; for whatever exceeded the Attic 
mediocrity, was considered by him as dissonant and unplea- 
sant. He made use of no fastidious nicety in the division 
of his discourses, nor any fine-spun sentences ; nor was he 
even known to adopt an ironical manner, nor any kind of 
apostrophising with his hearers. He spoke as it were 
from a tripod* — to wit, I know, and It seems to me — 



* To speak from a tripod appears to have been a proverbial expres- 
sion. Atheneus, in the 2d chap, of his 2d book, says, the prize of the 
victor in all sports in honour of Bacchus is a tripod : because we say 
that he speaks from a tripod, who speaks truth. A tiipod is the pro- 
perty of Apollo, on account of the truth of his oracles, and is also that 
of Bacchus, on account of the truth which is the consequence of 
d i inking wine. 



30 

and to what purpose is this, and you must know. His 
sentences were short and adamantine — his words authorita- 
tive, and adapted to the sense, and the bare utterance of 
them conveyed a sound as if they were sanctioned by the 
sceptre of royalty. Being asked once by a subtile dispu- 
tant why he did not propose what side of a question he 
should take in argument ? — he replied, when I was a young 
man, I used to follow that practice, but that it was no 
longer necessary, as it was now become his duty not to 
investigate, but to teach the result of his investigations. 
When he was asked by the same logician, how a wise 
man should speak, he said, as a legislator, for it was the 
part of a legislator to command the multitude to do, 
what he himself was convinced ought to be done. In 
this way he conducted himself at Antioch, and converted 
many who were strangers to all knowledge. 



CHAP. XVIII. 

AFTER this he resolved to extend his travels; and visit 
the Indies, and the wise men of that country who were 
called Brachmans, and Germanes ;* saying, it was the 
business of young men to travel, and make themselves 
known in foreign lands. To converse with the magi, 
who inhabit Babylon and Susa, and to learn all they 
knew, he considered would be cause sufficient for under- 
taking the journey. He then disclosed his intentions to 
his companions, seven in number, who, as they thought 
differently on that subject, endeavoured to divert him from 
going. On this he said to them, " I have consulted the 



* Germanes were a cast of the Gymnosophistae (a common name for 
Indian philosophers) who led a solitary life in the woods, abstaining 
from wine and women, and using many severities. 



31 

Gods, I have declared to you their will, to make trial of 
your com age, whether you will go with me or not ; and 
since 1 rind you have not resolution to go, I bid you fare- 
wel, and desire you may study philosophy. It is my 
duty to go where wisdom and my demon lead me." 
After this declaration, he departed from Antioch, at- 
tended only by two domestics of his own family, who were 
expert scribes, the one eminent for the dispatch with 
which he wrote, and the other for the beauty of his hand- 
writing. 



CHAP. XIX. 

ON his coming to the ancient Ninus,* he found a statue 
erected after a barbarous taste. It was Io, the daughter 
of Inachus, whose horns appeared small, and just as if 
budding. Whilst he remained in this city, and learnt all 
he could of the statue from the priests and prophets, he 
met with Damis, whom I have noticed in the beginning 
of this book, as his fellow-traveller and companion ; and 
one to whom we are indebted for the knowledge of many 
particulars concerning Apollonius. The Ninevite soon 
became attached to him, and being fond of travelling, said, 
Let us go — " God shall be your guide, and you shall be 



* This ancient Nimis, from the account given of it here by Philostratus, 
must have been situate some where between Antioch and Zeugma, 
on the Euphrates, and cannot refer to that which stood on the banks 
of the Tigris, and was destroyed 700 years before Christ. In the fol- 
lowing passage from Ammianus Marcellinus, the town itself appears 
marked out as in Commagena, a district of Syria. " Commagena 
nunc Euphratensis clementer assurgit, Hierapoli, Vetere Nineve, & 
Samosata civitatibus amplis illustres." Now what place can be un- 
derstood by the Vetere Nineve of Marcellinus in Commageua, except 
the antiqua Ninus, the birth-place of Damis, and the town visited by 
Apollonius on his way from Antioch to Zeugma. 



mine. I think I may serve you on the journey, for if I 
know any thing, it is the road leading to Babylon, together 
with the towns and villages on the way, wherein can be 
found any accommodation, it being not long since I re- 
turned from thence. I am, besides, acquainted with the 
languages of the barbarians,* namely, the Armenians, 
Medes, Persians, and Cadusians. But, my friend, re- 
turned Apollonius, I know them all myself, though I 
never learnt them. Whilst Damis stood in amaze at 
what he heard : do not be surprised, continued Apollonius, 
at my knowing all tongues, for I know the very thoughts 
of men, even what they do not say. When Damis heard 
this he adored him, considering him as a demon.f He 
then became a proselyte to his opinions, and whatever he 
learnt from him, he did not forget. This Assyrian had 
some eloquence, though from his education among barba- 
rians, ignorant of all the rules which constitute elegance in 
writing. Yet his observation of whatever was either 
said or done in company, was acute, and he kept an exact 
account of all that passed, which appears from a book he 
wrote called the Apolloniana. — Damis was desirous to 



* If Apollonius knew all the languages of the several nations men- 
tioned in the text, Eusebius says, he must have been an apt scholar, 
and possessed of an excellent memory. When we add to this, that he 
afterwards attained to the knowledge of the language of brute animals,, 
we must say, that the man who undertakes that, may ascribe what 
meaning he pleases to their sounds, without any fear of confutation : 
but when he goes further, and says he understood the very thoughts of 
men, we can only laugh at his presumption, or at Philostratus's folly 
in taking notice of it. If Damis was such a simpleton as to believe 
all this, we need not be surprised at his adoring him, and taking him 
for a demon. Dr. Jortin supposes he could speak a little of several 
languages, for he was, says he, a man of parts, and a strolling vaga- 
bond. 

t The French translator has a note which marks the difference of 
feeling between himself and Damis— it is this " J'avoue ma malice ; je 
me serois mis a rire, & j'aurois pris Apollonius pour un fou." Damis 
thought otherwise, " Maluit esse Deum." 



33 

learn every thing of Apollonius, and as desirous to put 
down in his book every circumstance, however minute and 
trifling. The answer he made to one who condemned this 
kind of writing was neat and apposite. It was to an en- 
vious impertinent fellow who said that there were some 
things he wrote of Apollonius well enough, particularly 
his opinions and sayings, but that the crumbs he collected, 
put him in mind of die dogs that eat of whatever falls 
from their master's table. To this criticism Damis made 
the following reply : if the Gods have feasts, and eat at 
them, they have also attendants who wait on them ; and 
whose business it is to take care that none of the ambrosia 
be lost. Such was the friend and companion by whom 
Apollonius was accompanied during a great part of his life. 



CHAP. XX. 

WHEN our travellers were passing into Mesopotamia, 
the publican at the bridge of Zeugma* carried them to 
the toll-books, and asked what they brought with them. 
To whom Apollonius said, I bring with me temperance, 
justice, continence, fortitude, patience, and many other 
virtues, which he called by feminine names. The tax- 
gatherer, who thought of nothing but his fees, said — he 
had written down the names of his maids — but returned 
Apollonius, they are rfot maids — they are mistresses, who 
travel with me.f Mesopotamia is formed by the Tigris 
and Euphrates, two rivers running out of Armenia, and 
the farthest parts of mount Taurus, and encompassing the 



* Zeugma, a town on the Euphrates, the great pass from Syria to 
Osroene, the northern district of Mesopotamia : the two countries 
being joined by a bridge, as is intimated by the name. 

t Ce conte, says Du Pin, sent bien la fiction, et paroit invent^ par 
Damis, ou par Philostrate. 

D 



34 

and in which are some cities and many villages. It is 
inhabited by a people who came from Armenia and 
Arabia, and who being shut in by these rivers,* wander 
up and down without any fixed habitations. They look 
on themselves so much as islanders, that they use the 
phrase of going down to the sea, whenever they go to 
these rivers, within whose course they have fixed the bound- 
aries of the earth, because these rivers, after having formed 
the country we are speaking of, run into the sea.f Some 
writers say that a great part of the Euphrates disappears in 
a marsh, and is lost under ground. But others, adopting a 
bolder language, assert that after it disappears in Mesopo- 
tamiai it rises again in Egypt, and mixes with the waters 
of the Nile. To preserve greater accuracy in my narra- 
tive, and omit nothing material noticed by Damis in 
his journal, it was my intention to give a particular account 
of the manner in which Apollonius spent his time among 
the barbarians, but my subject calls me to higher and more 
wonderful objects. Yet two circumstances are not to be 
cursorily passed over, first the fortitude which supported 
him in travelling through countries that were barbarous, 
and infested with robbers, and unsubdued by the Roman 
arms ; aud next, the wisdom which led him after the man- 
ner of the Arabians, to make himself acquainted with the 
language of animals. This knowledge he acquired when 
amongst the Arabians, who of all people are best versed 
in its theory and practice ; for augury is still in credit with 
them, and the divination by birds J is as much respected 



* Called in the text Nomades a pennutandis pabulis, — that is, as 
Pliny says, raapalia sua, seilicet-domos plaustris circumferentes. 

t We know now that the rivers unite at Apamea or Coma, into the 
broad stream of the Pasitigris, and run into the Persian Gulf, about oue 
hundred miles from the junction. D'Anville. 

X He understood the speech of birds 
As well as they themselves do words : 

Could 






95 

by them, at that by oracles. This talent is obtained ac- 
cording to some, by their feeding on the heart, and accord- 
ing to others, on the liver of dragons. 



CHAP. xxr. 

AFTER passing beyond Ctesiphon, # Apollonius entered 
the territories of Babylon, where he was met by the King's 
guard, whose orders were to let none pass without exami- 
nation ; and having first answered the questions, " who 
they were," " whence they came," and " the cause of 
their coming." The officer who commanded the guard, 
was by way of distinction called one of the king's-eyes,*]- 
for the Mede,{ who had lately obtained the supreme 
power, was not as yet fully settled on his throne, and from 
being alarmed at every flying rumour, whether true or 
false, had fallen into a state of perpetual apprehension. 
In consequence of this vigilance, Apollonius and his com- 



Could tell what subtlest parrots mean 
That speak and think contrary clean : 
What member 'tis of whom they talk, 

When they cry rope, and walk knave, walk. Hudibras. 
Inveterata fuit gentilium opinio, inter se colloqui Bruta et corum 
sermones a multis intelligi : unde ars vel interpretandi voces aniraa- 
lium; in qua excelluisse dicuntur apud veteres, Melampus, Tiresias, 
Thales Milesius, Apollonius Tyaneus. 

* Ctesiphon, a city of Assyria, on the east side of the Tigris, opposite 
to Seleucia. 

t It appears from Apuleius, that the faithful friends of the Persian 
kings were called aures regioe, and imperatoris oeuli. 

$ The Mede — called Baraancs Arsacida ; it may be noticed here 
that the names of Persian, Mede, and Parthian, are often confounded 
in history. This Bardanes, or Vardanes, was the son of Arta- 
banus, whose story is told by Tacitus, in the 6th and 11th book 
of his annals; he succeeded to the throne in consequence of the 
misfortunes which befel his two elder brothers, Arsaces and 
Partus. 

T) <2 



96 

panions were carried before the Satrap, who just at that 
moment was taking the air in his palanquin. As soon as 
he saw the squalid, meagre figure of the man, he screamed 
out in fright like a woman, and covered his face. At 
length, when he ventured to look up, he addressed him as 
a demon, and asked, " whence art thou sent to us ?" 
From myself, replied Apollonius, to instruct you to be- 
come men, in defiance of yourselves. Then the Satrap asked 
who he was, who dared to enter the King's dominions ? 
To this Apollonius calmly answered, the whole earth is 
mine,* and I have leave to go wherever I please through 
it. When the Satrap heard this, he said, if you answer 
me not explicitly I will put you to the torture. To this 
Apollonius said, " O that the punishment were to be in- 
flicted by your own hands, that you might pay the merited 
penalty for daring to touch such a man. The eunuch, 
astonished at finding that the man required no interpreter, 
and that he comprehended and answered every thing with- 
out the least hesitation, changed his voice and manner, 
and adjured him in the name of the Gods, to say who he 
was — As you condescend, said Apollonius, to ask me 
with so much civil courtesy, hear then who I am. I am 
Apollonius of Tyana, I am going to the King of the 
Indians, to learn from him what is doing in that country. 
I should be glad to see your King, for all who have con- 
versed with him, say he is not without virtue, and I am 
inclined to credit this report, if it is Vardanes who has just 
recovered his lost kingdom. He is the very man, divine 
Apollonius, returned the Satrap, (for of you we have 
heard long ago ;) and he is one who would resign his crown 
to a wise man ; and will take care to have you and your 
companions forwarded to the Indies, each mounted on a 



* This expression is agreeable to the Cynic and Stoic paradox, 
which says, that the wise man possesses all things ; Sapienti omnia esse 



3? 

camel.* For my part I make you my guest, and offer 
you these treasures (at the same time he shewed him heaps 
of gold) to take what you please, not only once, but ten 
times. When the governor found he refused the money, 
he said, take I pray thee this Babylonish wine,f it is of 
that kind which the King gives to his ten satraps. Besides, 
I request you may take these pieces of roasted swine and 
goat ; and also some flower and bread, and whatever else 
you please : for the journey you are about to undertake is 
one of many stadia, wherein are many villages, but indif- 
ferently supplied with accommodations. The eunuch was 
shocked the moment he recollected the way in which he 
was going to entertain a man, whom fame represented as 
abstaining from all animal food and wine. But Apollonius 
without being offended, said, you may treat me sump- 
tuously, if you provide me with bread and herbs. I will 
give you, continued the eunuch, leavened bread, and 
datesj from the palm-tree, that are large and resemble 
amber; and herbs, the growth of the gardens of the Tigris. 
Apollonius said, he would rather have the herbs that 
grew wild and spontaneously, than what were forced and 



* Qui croira, says Du Pin, que la reputation d'Apollone, encore 
jeune, qui n'etoit jamais sorti de la Grece, eut deja £te portee 
en Babylone, y fut deja si publique et si bien etablie, qu'un Satrape lui 
fit tant d'honneur sur son seul nom, et le traitat du premier abord 
d'homme divin. 

t Babylonish wine— the produce of the palm-tree ; it is the wine 
which Pliny says is in general use all over the East, and is that which 
is given by the King to his ten Satraps. The whole empire under 
the Parthians was divided into nineteen kingdoms, of which eleven 
were called the Upper, and the remainder the Lowei\ The ten Satraps 
belonged to the Upper Kingdom, and it is probable that two kingdoms 
had but one Satrap. 

t Atheneus speaks of the beauty and size of the dates, and says they 
resembled amber in their color. Xenophon, in his Anabasis, mentions 
the same. The learned Kzempfer, Gibbon says, has exhausted the 
whole subject of palm-trees. 



38 

artificial, as he did suppose they were sweeter. Sweeter* 
do you say, said the Satrap, I fear the soil about Ba- 
bylon abounds in wormwood,* and tends to make the 
vegetables bitter and unpleasant to the taste. At last 
Apollonius, out of respect to the Satrap, made use of 
these words when he was taking his leave of him, — " Cease 
not from doing good, but I say also, begin by doing good." 
By this he rebuked him not only for the threat he held 
out of the torture, but for the very uncivil language he at 
first used to him. 



CHAP. XXII. 

AFTER this our travellers continued their journey, and 
proceeding about twenty stadias, lighted on a lioness 
just killed in the chase, that was one of the largest ever 
seen in these parts. The people from the neighbouring 
villages, and even the huntsmen themselves, gathering all 
around, raised a loud cry as if they had beheld something 
wonderful. And indeed it was so, for when the lioness 
was opened, there were found eight young ones in her 
belly. It is said the lioness carries her young six months, 
and brings forth only three times in her life. At her first 
litter she has three, at the second, two, and if she has a 
third, but one, which is, I suppose, larger, and more 
ferocious than usual. No credit is to be given to those 
writers, who say that the young whelpsf gnaw the wombs 
of their mothers in order to set themselves at liberty : for 
I think no doubt can be entertained but that nature has 
formed a mutual attachment between the parent and her 



* Absynthium, wormwood, called by Dioscorides Qa. Qvirutpov a profondo 
amat ore. 

t This story of the young lions treatment of their mother, is taken 
from Herodotus. Thalia, chap. 108. 



3Q 

young to preserve the species. As soon as Apollonius saw 
the beast, he remained long without uttering a word ; 
at length he opened his mouth, and said, O Damis, the 
time we are to stay with the King, will be just a year 
and eight months. He will not suffer us to go sooner, 
and I do not think it would be proper for us to depart 
before the expiration of that period : as the number of the 
months may be conjectured* from that of the young, and 
the year, from the mother, for things perfect in themselves, 
can be only compared with what are perfect. But what, 
said Damis, will Homer's^ sparrows say to all this ? I 
mean the eight devoured at Aulis by the serpent, and the 
mother that made the ninth ; for certainly Calchas in his 
interpretation of that prodigy, foretold a war of nine years at 
Troy. It therefore behoves us not to have our stay extended 
to the same length, according to the calculation of Homer and 
Calchas. Whereupon Apollonius said, Homer (it is true) 
compared the young of the sparrow to years, and he did so, 
because they were born, and in possession of life ; but in the 
case before us, the young are imperfect, unborn, and perhaps 
would never have seen the light ; and why should I com- 
pare them to years ? for the irregular productions of nature 
are not easily brought forth, and if they are, they soon 
perish. But mind, Damis, what I say, and let us con- 
tinue our journey without ceasing to offer up our prayers 
to the Gods who shew us such signs. 



* Wonderful mystery, truly. 

t Homer's Iliad: 2d. Book. " Tout cela," says Du Pin, " est 
qn'un jeu d'esprit, et une pensee imaginee apres coup, pour faire 
valour ce trait d'Homere, et faire paroitie de rerudition." 



40 



CHAP. XXIII. 

WHEN he was drawing near Cissia, after entering the 
province of Babylon, he had the following vision in his 
sleep, prepared by the deity who communicated it. He 
thought he saw some fishes cast on the shore panting for 
breath, who complained like mortals, and bewailed the 
element they had lost. They looked as if imploring the 
aid of a dolphin, who was swimming near them, and 
seemed as much to be pitied as men in exile, deploring 
their hard fortune. Apollonius, without being at all moved 
by the dream, considered with himself what it might sig- 
nify; however, to frighten Damis, who was of a timid 
nature, he affected to be alarmed as to what it might por- 
tend. This was successful, for Damis, terrified as if he 
had seen the result, advised him not to go farther, and 
said, we may perish like those poor fishes, driven from 
our houses, and may lament in a strange land, ; and per- 
haps, if we fall into great straits and difficulties, may be 
forced to apply to some prince or potentate for assistance, 
who will treat us, as those fishes are treated by the dol- 
phin. Apollonius with a smile said, you are not yet a phi- 
losopher, Damis, if you were, you would not be alarmed 
at such things as these; but attend, and I will give you 
the explanation of the dream. The people who inhabit 
the district of Cissia ; are the Eretrians, # who about five 
hundred years ago were carried away by Darius from 
Eubea, and who like the poor fishes in the dream, are 



* Darius settled the Eretrians at Ardericca, in the district of Cissia, 
one of the royal stations, 210 stadia from Susa. See Herodotus, Erato, 
chap. J 19. This visit of Apollonius to Arsaces Bardanes, was about the 
year of Christ 50, according to Col, Kennel ; but according to Olea- 
rius not so late as 50. 



41 

now mourning their captivity; having been like them as it 
were taken in a net. The Gods therefore seem to com- 
mand me to take all the care I can of them; for perad- 
venture the souls of the Greeks who were cast by fate on 
this land, have invited me hither for their benefit. Let us 
then turn out of our way, and make enquiries for that 
well, # near which, it is said, they dwell. The well is com- 
posed of bitumen, oil, and water, and when drawn up 
and poured on die ground, its component parts separate, 
and may be distinguished from each other. That Apollo- 
nius was in Cissia is witnessed by himself in his letter to 
the Clazomenian Sophist, for he was of such a mild ge- 
nerous disposition, that the moment he saw the Eretrians, 
he put the Sophist in mind of them, and gave him an ac- 
count of their situation, which he afterwards referred to in 
his letters. Through the whole of the epistle he exhorts 
him to pity the Eretrians, and not to omit shedding tears 
for them, whenever he made their condition the subject 
of a declamation. 



CHAP. XXIV. 

THE account we are to give of the Eretrians, corresponds 
exactly with what Damis has written of them. They 
dwell in the country of the Medes, not farther from Babylon 
than what a speedy messenger might go in one day. The 
country is without cities, for in Cissia are to be found 
only villages and hamlets : the wandering tribes by which it 
is inhabited are called Nomades, who seldom or ever alight 
from their horses. That part of it occupied by the 
Eretrians, lies in the interior of the country, and is in- 



* There is a particular account of this well in Herodotus, chap, as 
aforesaid. 



4* 

closed by a river, which serves them as a rampart against 
the inroads of the barbarians. The land abounds with 
bitumen, which renders all its Vegetable productions un- 
wholesome. The natives are short-lived, for as the water 
is impregnated with this unctuous matter, it leaves a noxi- 
ous sediment in the stomach. Their principal food is de- 
rived from a hilJ, adjoining the village, which on account of 
its being higher than the surrounding waste, is sown with 
corn, as its soil is esteemed good. There is a tradition 
among the natives, that seven hundred and eighty Eretrians 
were made prisoners, of whom all were not fighting men, 
because in that number were included some old men and 
women, and I suppose children. A great part of the 
Eretrians, we are informed, fled to the promontory Capha- 
reus, and the mountainous regions of Eubea ; but about 
four hundred men and ten women came to Susa ; the 
mortality which began after their leaving Ionia and Lydia, 
having caused the difference to fall away in proportion as 
they advanced farther into the country. As the hill we 
have mentioned supplied them with quarries of stone, 
and as many among them were acquainted with the art of 
cutting it, they built temples after the models of the 
Greeks, and a forum suited to their circumstances. 
They likewise built altars, two in honor of Darius, one in 
honor of Xerxes, and many to Daridoeus.* From the 
time of their captivity, till that of Daridceus, passed eighty- 
eight years. The manner of their writing was after the 
Greek fashion, and their ancient sepulchres were inscribed 
thus — " Here lyeth such a one, the son of such a one." 
The characters are in Greek, but our travellers said, they 
never saw such before. The inscriptions engraved on their 
tombs were all expressive of the several professions which 



* Who this Daridoeus was, I have not been able to learn from any of 
the commentators. 



they followed in Eubea, one, to wit, followed the trade 
of a ferryman, another that of a murex-fisher, another 
of a sailor, and a fourth a dyer of purple. They found 
also some elegiac verses inscribed on the tomb of certain 
sailors and pilots, to the following effect. " We who for- 
merly ploughed the deep iEgean, lie here in a strange land 
in the midst of the Ecbatani. Farewel land of Eretria, of 
old renowned. Farewel Athens, near Eubea, and fare^ 
wel sweet sea." Damis writes that Apollonius repaired 
the mouldering sepulchres, and built an enclosure round 
them — that he offered libations, and performed all rites 
due to their manes without victims, and the shedding of 
blood. — Damis adds, he wept, and in the sadness of his 
heart uttered these words in the midst of them. " O ye 
men of Eretria, who were carried here by the decrees of 
fate ; though far from home you obtained a grave ; but 
they who cast you on this land, perished unburied about 
your island ten years after your captivity." Apollonius at 
the end of his epistle to the sophist, says, O Scopelianus, # 
though young, I have not neglected your Eretrians, and 
have done all the good I could to the living and dead. 
But in what way did he render any service to the living ? 
I will tell you. The barbarians who lived in the vicinity 
of the hill of which we have spoken, used to come in the 
summer and carry off all the ripe corn ; in consequence 
of which the Eretrians, who cultivated it, were exposed to 
famine and want. Apollonius in the first audience he 
had with the King, obtained a grant, by which the sole 
use and enjoyment exclusively of this hill was for ever se- 
cured to them. 



* Scopelianus, preceptor of Herodes Atticus, to whom Apollonius 
has addressed several of his Epistles. He was one of the most eminent 
orators of the age, and was well rewarded by Julius Atticus for the 
services he rendered to his son. 



44 



CHAP. XXV. 

THE following account is what I have been able to learn 
of Babylon and Apollonius, whilst he staid in it. Ba- 
bylon* is built within a circumference of four hundred 
and eighty stadia. The walls are in height one plethron 
and a half, and in breadth not much less than a plethron. 
It is divided equally into two parts by the Euphrates, 
under which runs a bridge of wonderful construction, 
uniting invisibly the royal palaces, that are built on each 
side of it. It is said, a woman of the Median nationf who 
formerly possessed the empire, joined the river by means 
of a bridge, in a way never done before. After having 
collected on each bank of the river the stones, and brass, 
and bitumen, and whatever other materials were necessary 
for building in the water, she turned the course of the 
stream into the contiguous morasses.J This dried up the 
channel, and then she caused a trench to be dug across it 
of the depth of two orguias, through which a passage might 



* Notwithstanding the account which is here given of Babylon at 
the time of Apollonius visiting it, I believe few vestiges then remained 
of its ancient grandeur, and the royal seat of government was trans- 
ferred to Ctesephon. The circumference given to it by our author is 
the same with that assigned it by Herodotus and Pliny, 480 stadia, the 
average stadium may be reckoned at 500 feet. The height of a plethron 
and a half to the walls, taking the plethron at a hundred feet, is the 
same as the height given them by Quintus Curtius, of 150 feet. Their 
breadth, of not much less than a plethron, corresponds not with the 
breadth of any of the writers. Herodotus gives 75 feet for their 
breadth, and Curtius and Strabo 32 feet. Pausanias, who lived under 
the Antonines, says, that in his time nothing remained of Babylon but 
its walls, and the temple of Belus. 

t The Median woman, Semiramis, the wife of Ninus. 

% Paludes Babylonica?. 



45 

be as on dry land to the palaces that stood on each side.* 
This passage was covered with an arch of the same eleva- 
tion with the bed of the river ; and its foundation and sides 
were made as fast as they could : but as the bitumen re- 
quired water to harden, and make it cement, the Eu- 
phrates was let in over the wet arch to give it solidity and 
a durable consistence. The royal mansions are covered 
with brass, which contribute much to their beauty and 
splendor. The apartments of both men and women, to- 
gether with the porticos, are adorned, some with silver, 
others with tapestry of gold, and even some with beaten 
gold in place of pictures. The painted decorations of their 
hangings were all taken from Greek stories, of which An- 
dromeda, and A my m one, and Orpheus,*f* supplied subjects. 
They are delighted with Orpheus, more I am inclined to 
think from the reverence they have for his tiara and loose 
hose, than for his skill in music, and the divine songs with 
which he charms the soul. In the tapestry-workj were 
also to be seen Datis plucking Naxos out of the sea, 
Artaphernes besieging Eretria, and the victories of King 
Xerxes. To -these were added, Athens in the possession 
of the enemy, and Thermopylae, and such other representa- 
tions as were fitted to swell the Median pride ; as rivers 
dried up, bridges flung across the ocean, and mount 
Athos perforated. It is said Apollonius visited an apart- 
ment belonging to the men, whose ceiling was arched in 



* See Diodorus Siculus, b. ii. chap. l. who gives an account of this 
vaulted passage under the bed of the Euphrates, which Philostratus 
says was in depth two orguias, or 12 feet. 

t The stories of Andromeda and Orpheus are better known than 
that of Amymone, who was the daughter of Danaus and Europa, and 
married to Enceladus, whom she murdered the first night of her nup- 
tials. 

% See Herodotus, for an illustration of the particular portion of his* 
represented in the tapestry. 



46 

the form of the heavens, and covered with Sapphire, 
which is a stone of an azure colour, resembling the sky. 
Under this canopy were suspended the images of their re- 
puted deities, wrought in gold, and shedding a light as if 
from heaven. Here it is, where the King sits in judgment. 
Four birds* in gold hung from the roof, which appeared 
in the act of denouncing vengeance on the King, if he 
did wrong, and at the same time of admonishing him, not 
to exalt himself above what is mortal. The Magi, whosef 



* Rather four golden figures, in shape like birds, called Hecatine 
Strophali, or Hecatine Sphaerula?; in the midst of each was inclosed a 
sapphire, and about each of them was folded a leather thong, beset 
all over with characters. These sphaerulae they whipped about, whilst 
they made their invocations, and called them Jynges, their appellation 
in the text. Stanley says they used to call them Jijnges, whether they 
were round, or triangular, or any other figure, and whilst they were 
doing thus, they made insignificant or brutish cries, and lashed the air 
with their whips, Jynx is also the bird, motacilla, or wag-tail, and the 
figures were called Hecatine, from being dedicated to Hecate, a Chal- 
dean goddess, who has at her right side the fountain of virtues. 

t Ammianus Marcellinus has a long account of the Magi, which I 
think not amiss to transcribe here. Plato, a most celebrated author, at 
singular opinions, informs us, that Magia, in a mystical sense, is no- 
thing but Machagistia, which signifies the most incorrupt worship and 
pure observance of divine ceremonies, to which knowledge Zoroaster 
the Bactrian added many things out of the secrets of the Chaldeans ; 
and after him, that most wise prince Hystaspes, the father of Darius, 
who whilst he was traversing the interior parts of upper India, arrived 
at a deep forest, the peaceful retreat of the Brachmans, men of the 
most sublime knowledge, from whom he learnt as far as he was capable, 
the system of the world, the motions of the stars, and the most pure 
rites of their religion ; and from what he collected there, he communi- 
cated part to the Magi, who transmitted it to their descendants, to- 
gether with the art of foreseeing things to Come. From that time to 
the present, one and the same unmixed class of men is dedicated to 
the worship of the Gods. It is also said (if it is right to believe it) 
that there is kept a fire, which fell from heaven, perpetually burning 
on their hearths, of which a small portion in former times went before 
the Kings of Asia, as an auspicious sign of good fortune. These 
priests were few in number, and were the people employed by the 



47 



business it is to wait in his apartment, had these figures 
made, which they call the Tongues of the Gods. 



CHAP. XXVI. 

OF the Magi, Apollonius has said all he thought suffi- 
cient ; he had several conversations with them, and after a 
mutual interchange of knowledge, took his leave of them. 
Damis confesses his ignorance of what passed between 
them, and says, Apollonius would not suffer him to be 
present at any of their interviews, which used to take place 
at mid-day, and mid-night. When Apollonius was asked 
his opinion of them, he said, they are wise, but not in all 
thi?igs. However, of them hereafter. 



CHAP. XXVII. 

WHEN he came to Babylon, the Satrap to whom was 
entrusted the care of the great gates, understanding that 
Apollonius travelled for the sake of knowledge, presented 
to him a golden image of the King ;* it being held unlaw- 
ful to enter the city without first worshipping it. This 
mark of submission was never dispensed with, except in 
favor of embassadors sent from the Roman Emperor; 



Persian Kings in their sacred ceremonies. It was a sacrilege to ap- 
proach the altars, or to touch a victim before that one of the Magi 
had by a set form of prayers poured forth certain precursory libations. 
Their numbers insensibly increasing, they became net only in name, 
but in reality, a great nation. 

* This manner of adoration was very common among the people of 
the East, who paid the highest veneration to the statues of their de- 
ceased princes. This ceremony, Blount thinks, was much for the same 
purpose as our oath of allegiance, to testify the respect and fidelity 
they had for their sovereign. 



48 

but every one else who came from barbarous nations, or 
from curiosity to see the country, if he did not first wor- 
ship the image, was, if discovered, stigmatised with dis- 
grace. Herein is to be seen how ceremonies of very little 
consequence were amongst barbarians committed to the 
care of great officers of state. As soon as Apollonius saw 
the image, he asked whose it was . ? and when he heard it 
was the King's, he said, this man whom you worship, if he 
is so fortunate as to be praised by me for his virtue and 
goodness, will acquire honor enough, and with these words 
passed through the gates. The Satrap followed in admi- 
ration, and taking him by the hand, asked him by an in- 
terpreter what was his name, his country, his pursuits, 
and the motive of his journey : and after taking down on a 
tablet his several answers, together with his dress and ap- 
pearance, bid him wait his pleasure. 



CHAP. XXVIII. 

ON this the Satrap made all the haste he could, to those 
men who are called the King's Ears, and after giving them 
an account of Apollonius, said, the man is not willing 
to worship the King's image, nor is at all like other men. 
He was then ordered into their presence, with an express 
injunction, that proper respect should be paid him, and 
no molestation offered ; when he came before them, he 
who was the eldest present, asked him why he despised 
the King ? Apollonius said he did not despise him. But 
will you, said he, hereafter do it ? Yes, said Apollonius, 
if I find by conversing with him, that he is not as good 
and virtuous as I expect. What presents* do you bring 



* The making of presents has been, and to this day is, customary in 
the East. No negotiation, no treaty of business whatever is entered 

into, 



49 

our King? I bring him, returned Apollonius, fortitude 
and justice, and some other like virtues. What, said 
the King's minister, do you bring these presents from an 
idea of our King's not being already possessed of them ? 
No, not exactly from that, answered Apollonius, but it 
is from the supposition, that if he is possessed of them, 
I may teach him their use. Our King, continued the 
minister, by the exercise of such virtues, has acquired the 
kingdom he had lost, and recovered his palace, not with- 
out much labour and toil. How many years is it, said 
Apollonius, since he recovered the kingdom ? Two 
years and two months, replied the minister. Then Apol- 
lonius, as he was wont to do, when he wished to give 
weight to his opinion, cried, O thou guardian of the 
royal person, or if any other appellation please thee 
better, hearken to what I say; Darius, the father of 
Cyrus and Artaxerxes, after a reign of about sixty* 
years, when he found his end approaching, is said to 
have sacrificed to justice, and thus exclaimed, " O 
mistress, whosoever thou art." By this may be inferred 
that he loved justice all his life, though he knew her not, 
nor ever thought himself possessed of her. Hence it 
came to pass that he educated his children so foolishly, 
that they waged war with each other, and the one was 
wounded and the other killed by his brother. And you 



into, or carried on without them. No one was allowed to appear 
in the presence of the Persian Kings without some gift, no matter 
of what value. To this account it may be added, that when 
our countryman, Lord Macartney, had his interview with the 
Emperor of China in 1793, the receiving and returning of presents, 
made a considerable part of the ceremony, and we may say, of the 
embassy also. 

* Philostratus differs from all other chronologers, in making 
Darius possess his kingdom 60 years. It is probable, as Olearius 
conjectures, that the period of 60 years refers to his age, and not to 
his reign. 

E 



50 

praise beyond all deserving, a King, as if possessed of every 
virtue, who perhaps does not know how to support his 
throne : and yet, if he becomes better than he is, the 
gain will be yours and not mine. Then one of the bar- 
barians present looking on him, said, unquestionably 
the Gods have given us this extraordinary man: for 
I am of opinion, that men of virtue conversing with a 
prince so well instructed as our King, must make him 
wiser, and better, and more gracious, inasmuch as these 
virtues are painted in his countenance. On this all ran 
to the palace, proclaiming the good tidings of a man 
being at the King's gates, who was wise, and a Greek, and 
an excellent counsellor. 



CHAP. XXIX. 

WHEN these tidings reached the King, he was in the 
act of offering sacrifice in the presence of the Magi, to 
whose care were committed the sacred rites of religion. 
He called one of them to him, and said, I now recollect 
the dream I told you of yesterday, when you came to me 
as I lay in bed. The King's dream was, that he thought 
himself Artaxerxes, the son of Xerxes, and that his own 
countenance became like unto his. This dream raised 
apprehensions in him, lest the change in his countenance 
should forebode a change in his affairs. As soon as he 
heard of the arrival of a wise man and a Greek at his 
court, he called to mind Themistocles, who came for- 
merly from Greece, and who by his conversations with 
Artaxerxes, made not only that prince estimable, but 
shewed himself such as he was represented. Then the 
King stretching out his right hand, said, bid the man come 
forward: and let our conversation begin under the good 
omens of having his prayers united with our own, in sacri- 
ficing to the Gods. 



51 

CHAP. XXX. 

AT length Apollonius made his entry amidst a great train, 
who attended him out of respect to the King, who, it is 
said, was much gratified at his arrival. When he came 
into the palace, he took no notice of any of those things 
which in general excite the admiration of people, but 
passed on like a man on a journey. Then turning to 
Damis, he said, did not you ask me some time ago, the 
name of the Pamphylian woman who was Sappho's 
acquaintance, and who composed hymns that are still 
accustomed to be sung in honor of the Pergean* Diana, 
after the Eolian and Pamphylian measure. I did, said 
Damis, but you made me no answer. I did not my friend, 
but I explained to you the measures of the hymns, and 
the names of the measures ; and how she transposed certain 
pieces of music which were set to the Eolian measure, 
from that to a measure of the highest key, and one which 
the Pamphylians claim as their own. As other objects 
afterwards occurred and attracted our attention, you asked 
me no more about her. But I will now answer you : her 
name is Damophyla, f she had, like Sappho, a company of 
young virgins in her train, who attended her as scholars, 
and she composed like Sappho, verses, of which some 
were amorous, and some in honor of the Gods. The 
verses she composed in honor of Diana, are sung in the 
Sapphic measure as well as in the Pamphylian, or the 
measure of Damophyla, which differs from that of 
Sappho. How little Apollonius was affected by all the 
rich and splendid circumstances of royalty, appeared by 



* Perga, a town in Paniphylia, where Diana was worshipped with 
peculiar veneration. 

t. Damophyla was contemporary with Sappho — and not only wrote 
hymns in honour of the Pergean Diana, but opened a school where 
the young virgins, her scholars, were taught the various powers of 
music and poetry. Bayle — art. Perga. 

E 2 



50, 

his not even condescending to look at them, and by talking 
of the most insignificant matters, as if they were actually 
before him. 

CHAP. XXXI. 

WHEN the King saw him at a distance approaching, 
(for the court of the temple was spacious) he spoke to his 
attendants in a way which shewed he recognised the man. 
As soon as he drew nearer, he cried out with a loud voice, 
saying, this is Apollonius whom my brother Megabetes 
saw at Antioch, who was honored and esteemed by all 
the good, and whom he described exactly such as he now 
appears to me. As Apollonius advanced, the King spoke 
to him in Greek, and commanded him to join in the sacri- 
fice which he was then offering to the sun, of a white 
horse from the Nisean* plains, adorned as if prepared 
for a solemn procession. To this Apollonius said, do 
you, O King, sacrifice after your manner, but let me sacri- 
fice after mine. After he said this, he took the frankin- 
cense in his hand and uttered these words, O Sun ! conduct 
me to whatever part of the world it may seem good to you 
and me ; and grant me only to know the virtuous : but as 
to the wicked, I wish neither to know them, nor to be 
known by them. With these words he threw the frank - 
incensef into the fire, observing at the same time the 

* > isceus Compus, — a plain in Media, famous for its breed of horses. 
The chariot of Xerxes was drawn by them, and in all processions the 
sacred horses were Nisaean. The Nisaean pastures are spoken of 
in Diodorus Siculus. White horses were sacrificed to the sun almost 
among all nations, the Scythians, Greeks, and Romans. Livy, in 
speaking of Camillus having triumphed in a chariot drawn by four 
white horses, says, " parumque id non civile mcdo, sed humanum 
etiam visum. Jovis Solisque equis aequiparari dictatorem in religionem 
etiam trahebant : triumphusque ob cam unam maxime rem clarior quam 
gratior fuit." 

i Ltbanomanteia — divination by frankincense, which, if it caught 
fire, aud emitted a grateful odour, was esteemed a good omen ; but 
if the fire did not catch it, or it produced a disagreeable smell, it wa» 
a bad omen. 



53 

smoke, how it rose, and curled, and shot into spiral forms : 
and afterwards touching the fire as if it indicated good 
and propitious omens, he exclaimed, " O King ! do you 
continue to sacrifice after the ceremonies of your own 
country; for my part 1 have observed what belongs to 
mine." With this declaration he withdrew from the sacri- 
fice, through fear lest he should be made a partaker in the 
shedding of blood. 



CHAP. XXXII. 

WHEN the sacrifice was ended, Apollonius came for- 
ward, and said, O King!* do you know the Greek lan- 
guage, or only as much as serves for conversation, and 
for not appearing awkward when visited by any of that 
nation ? I know it, said the King, as 1 do my mother 
tongue, and therefore you may say what you please, for I 
suppose it is on that account you ask the question. It is 
indeed, replied Apollonius, and hearken, I pray you, to what 
I have to say. I am now going to visit the Indians, who 
are the chief objects of my journey ; yet I could not pass 
you by, particularly after hearing so much to your praise, 
which from experience I find true. Besides, I was 
anxious to know the wisdom that is professed by the 
Magi in your country, and whether they are, as report 
says, wise in things touching religion .f The wisdom 
I profess is that of Pythagoras the Samian, who taught 
me to worship the GodsJ in the way you perceived, 



* This must have been a matter of very little consequence to Apollo- 
nius, who says himself, he knew all languages. 

t How strictly he professed to observe the Pythagorean discipline, 
every where, and in all things, appears from this conversation, if Damis 
may be relied on. 

t For which cause Vopiscus styled him, amicus verus Deorum. 



54 

to discern their several natures, and respect them ac- 
cordingly, to converse with them, and dress myself in 
garments made from the genuine fleece of the earth, 
not torn from the sheep, but from what groweth pure 
from the pure, — from linen, the simple produce of the 
earth and water. I let my hair grow, and abstain from 
all animal food, in obedience to the doctrine of Pytha- 
goras. With you or any other man, I can never indulge 
in the gratifications of the table. I promise to free you 
from perplexing and vexatious cares, for J not only know, 
but foreknow what is to be. Such are the subjects on 
which Damis says Apollonius conversed with the King, and 
which are noticed by him in some of his epistles. Some 
other conversations passed which are referred to in his 
letters. 



chap, xxxin. 

THE King confessed he was more pleased with his 
coming, than if he had the wealth of India and Persia 
added to his own. He expressed a desire of making him 
his guest, and giving him apartments in the royal palace. 
What would you say, O King ! replied Apollonius, should 
I invite you to live in my house, in case of your coming 
to Tyana, the place of my birth, would you do it ? I think 
not, said the King, without the house was capable of 
receiving me and my attendants, and that in a way be- 
coming my rank and consequence. The truth is, said 
Apollonius, that were I to live in a house above my 
condition of life, I should not be comfortable. All kind 
of excess is irksome to the wise, as the want of it is to you 
who are of the great ones of the earth, and for this reason I 
prefer living with some private individual, whose fortune 
does not exceed my own; but as to conversation, I will 






55 

converse with you as much as you please. The King 
assented to his request, lest he might, unknown to himself, 
be die means of hurting his feelings on the occasion. 



CHAP. XXXIV. 

WHILST Apollonius staid, he lodged at the house of a 
Babylonian who was a man of good family and character. 
As he was sitting at supper with him, an eunuch came in 
(who was one of the royal messengers) and addressing 
himself to Apollonius, said, The King gives you the 
choice of ten boons, and the permission of chusing 
them, and he insists that you should not ask such as are of 
mean value, he being anxious to impress both you and us 
with a sense of his great bounty. Apollonius, flattered by 
the tenor of the royal message, enquired when the permis- 
sion would be granted. To-morrow, said the eunuch 
— and immediately proceeded to the King's friends and 
relations, with an order for their attendance at the hour 
appointed, to testify the respect paid to so honoured a sup- 
plicant. Damis says, he thought he would ask for nothing, 
from the knowledge he had of his peculiar disposition, 
and from knowing that his petitions to the Gods were all 
in general to this effect, O Gods ! grant me few possessio7is, 
and no wants ! Yet when he saw him stand in a pensive 
mood, and like one in deep thought, he imagined he 
might make a request, and was puzzled to think what it 
should be. At length, when evening came on, he said, I 
have been considering Damis, the reason why the barba- 
rians look on eunuchs as chaste, and why such ready ad- 
mission is given them into the apartments of the women. 
To this Damis said, the reason is obvious to a child — be- 
cause the operation by which they are made eunuchs, de- 
prives them of the power of loving, and this is such a 
reason for the permission, that it extends even to the liber- 



56 

ty of sleeping with women. But do you suppose, said 
Apollonius, that the operation alluded to cuts off both 
the power of loving, and that of knowing women? It 
does both, replied Damis ; for if the parts by which the 
body is excited to passion be removed, love will find no 
entrance into the human breast. Whereupon Apollonius 
paused, and then said> You shall understand to-morrow 
that eunuchs are capable of making love, and that the in- 
clination prompting thereto, making its way into the eyes, 
is not extinguished there, but retains its strength in full 
vigor. An event will shortly happen, which will shew you 
the false grounds on which your reasoning is built. For 
supposing any human means were discovered powerful 
enough to banish such desires from the mind, I do not 
think that the decent manners of the truly chaste should 
be ascribed to eunuchs, and the reason is, because they are 
compelled to the practice of the virtue, and drawn as it 
were by violence to the observation of it. The virtue de- 
nominated temperance* consists in not yielding to this 
passion, though you feel all the incentives to it ; but in 
abstaining from it, and shewing yourself superior to all its 
allurements. Here Damis resuming the conversation, 
said, We shall consider these things at another opportu- 
nity : at present it is your business to think of the answer 
you are to make to the royal message, which is so noble. 
For my part, I think you will ask nothing, but then how 
you are to act so, without seeming to slight what is offered, 
is the question. Consider this, and where you are— and 
don't forget we are entirely in the King's power. Besides, 
all appearance jof treating the King with disrespect 
should be avoided, for though we may have enough to 
supply our journey to India, that will not suffice for our 4 

* This precept relative to the restraint on our desires is admirable, 
and probably derived from still higher sources than the philosophy of 
the times. 



57 

coming back, and to that we ought to look, and to whom 
we ought to apply. Such was the address used to pacify 
Apollonius, and make him not despise the royal offers. 



CHAP. XXXV. 

ON this occasion Apollonius, as if he wished to add 
weight to Damis's reasoning, said, But why will you pass 
over, Damis, the examples of others? That, for instance, 
of JEschines* the son of Lysanias, who sailed to Sicily 
to visit the court of Dionysius, for the sake of money ; 
or that of Plato, who is said to have thrice measured the 
gulf of Charybdis for the same purpose ; or of Aristip- 
pus the Cyrenean, and Heliconf of Cyzicus, and Phyton,J 
who fled from Rhegium ; all these men plunged them- 
selves so deep into the treasures of Dionysius, that they 
could scarcely be extricated from them. Besides, they 
say, that Eudoxus§ of Gnidos, who sailed formerly into 
Egypt, confessed that money was his object, of which he 
talked to the King. However, not to traduce any more of 



• TEschines, called the philosopher, to distinguish him from many 
others of the same name, he was a disciple of Socrates whom he never 
forsook. He was poor, aud his poverty compelled him to visit Dio- 
nysius, the tyrant, at whose court he found Plato and Aristippus. He 
wrote many dialogues, together with several orations and epistles, 
which are much admired. 

t Helicon of Cyzicus foretold an eclipse of the sun, as appears 
from Plutarch's Life of Dion, which induced Plato to recommend him 
to the protection of Dionysius, with whom he lived in great favour. 

J Phyto was of a noble family of Elis, who, after being reduced to 
captivity with the rest of his countrymen, was at last forced to use 
very improper means for his support. 

§ Eudoxus of Gnidos was a man of learning and character, who, 
our author says, travelled into Egypt for the sake of money, but 
herein he is supposed to be mistaken, as it appears, his friends made 
a contribution for the purpose of enabling him to undertake the 
journey. 



58 

the learned, we are told that, Speusippus # the Athenian, 
loved money to such excess, that he went on purpose 
to Macedonia to be present at the nuptials of Cassander, 
at which he recited in public some bad verses for the sake 
of money. For my part, Damis, I think a wise man is 
subject to much greater dangers than are either soldiers or 
sailors : for envy clings to him whether he speaks or is 
silent ; whether he is employed or not, whether he does 
his duty, or neglects it, and lastly, whether he salutes you 
or does not. A wise man ought always to be on his guard, 
and know, that if he be overcome with sloth, or anger, or 
love, or any other excess, or acts in a way unbecoming his 
character, for all this he may perhaps be pardoned : but if 
he subject himself to the love of money, he never will ; 
on the contrary, he will be hated, as one who is the slave 
of every other vice. For it will be naturally supposed, that 
if he suffer himself to be overcome by the love of mo- 
ney, he is already overcome by the love of good-living, 
and fine clothes, and women, and wine. But perhaps 
Damis, you think, that committing a fault at. Babylon is 
not the same as committing one at Athens, or Olympia, 
or Delphi, and do not consider that every place is Greece 
to a wise man, who esteems no place desert or barbarous 
whilst he lives under the eyes of virtue, whose regards are 
extended but to very few men, and looks on such with an 
hundred eyes. Suppose Damis you were to meet with an 
Athleta (one of those who make the public games of 
Greece their chief study) you would naturally consider him, 
if he disputed the prize at Olympia, and went into Arca- 



* Speusippus, an Athenian philosopher, married one of Plato's 
nieces, and succeeded him in his school. Diogenes Laertius agrees 
with Apollonius, in saying he loved money, which is confirmed by one 
of Dionysius's letters to him which is still extant.— It savs, " Plato 
took no money from his scholars, but you exact it whether they are 
willing or not." 



59 

dia, a man of courage, without further proof of his prow- 
ess ; and the very same person were he to contend in the 
Pythian and N emean games, you would of course consider 
as having taken pains to prepare himself for them, because 
these games throughout Greece are celebrated, and the 
exercises of the stadia are of high renown. But sup- 
posing Philip, after taking some cities, or his son Alexan- 
der after gaining some victories, were to institute games on 
the occasion, do you imagine that this man would be less 
attentive to the care of his body, or less anxious for vic- 
tory, because he was to contend at dynthos, or Mace- 
donia, or Egypt ; and not among the Greeks, and in their 
most celebrated places of exercise. Damis writes he was 
so much affected by this discourse of Apollonius, that he 
became ashamed of what he said, and therefore intreated 
Apollonius to pardon him for presuming to give such ad- 
vice without having sufficiently considered and weighed his 
genius and temper. But Apollonius encouraging him, 
said, do not be discomfited, for I have talked thus not for 
the sake of rebuke, but illustration. 



CHAP. XXXVI. 

MEANWHILE an eunuch arrived with an invitation for 
Apollonius from the King. I shall attend on him, said 
he, as soon as I have performed, according to due custom, 
all things touching religion. Having therefore finished his 
offerings and prayers, he approached the King amidst the 
astonishment of all the spectators, on account of his singu- 
lar dress and venerable appearance. As soon as he came 
into the royal presence, the King said, I give you ten 
boons, inasmuch as I consider you in a light different from 
any other man who ever came from Greece. To this, 
Apollonius answered, I will not, O King! refuse all your 
boons, but I have one to ask which I prize more than 



60 

many tens : and he then entered on the business of the 
Eretrians, beginning with Datis. My request is, that 
you may not take from those wretched men their borders 
and favoured hill, but may permit them to retain that por- 
tion of land which was giveu them by Darius ; for it 
would be hard indeed, if driven from their own country, 
they were not suffered to keep that which was assigned 
them as an equivalent for what they lost. To which the 
Kiug assenting, said, Till yesterday the Eretrians were 
our enemies, and the enemies of our forefathers : in for- 
mer times they took up arms against us, which is the cause 
of their having been so neglected by us, that scarce a 
remnant of them survives. Henceforward however we 
shall consider them as friends, and I will give them a good 
governor, and one who will do them justice. But why not 
accept, said the King, the remaining nine boons ? Be- 
cause, replied he, I have not as yet acquired more friends. 
But, returned the King, is there nothing of which you 
stand in need yourself? Nothing, answered Apollonius, but 
some fruit and bread, which make me a most sumptuous 
repast. 



CHAP. XXXVII. 

WHILST they were discoursing in this manner, a scream- 
ing was heard from that quarter of the palace where the 
women and eunuchs resided. An eunuch had been 
caught in bed with one of the King's concubines, whom 
they had seized, and were dragging by the hair of the 
head round the women's apartment, treating him like one 
of the royal slaves. Whereupon the chief and eldest of 
the eunuchs said, he had long perceived his attachment to 
this woman, and had given his orders that he should not 
converse with her, nor touch her neck, or hands, and of 
all, that he alone should not be suffered to dress her, 



61 

and notwithstanding this prohibition, he has been found in 
bed with her. When Apollonius heard this, he looked at 
Damis, as if die truth was now apparent of that question 
which they had lately discussed on the subject of eunuchs 
being capable of loving. On this the King, turning to 
those who were standing about him, said, it would not be 
decorous in him to give his opinion on the subject of 
chastity whilst Apollonius was present. To what punish- 
ment, Apollonius, do you sentence the culprit? To what 
other, replied he, than to that of being suffered to live; a 
decision directly contrary to all their opinions. What, re- 
turned the King, blushing, is he not worthy of many 
deaths who has violated my bed ? The sentence, said 
Apollonius, which I have passed, is not for pardon, but 
for the consequent punishment : for if he be permitted to 
live in the disease, in imagining impossibilities, neither 
what he eats, or drinks, will serve him, nor will the amuse- 
ments which entertain so much you and your court, give 
him any pleasure. Besides, he will be subject to all the 
inconveniencies which usually attend on those who are in 
love, such as sudden startings in his sleep, and frequent 
palpitations of the heart. And what malady, do you 
think, can so corrode him, or grief fret him ? If he is 
of the number of those who are not much attached to life, 
he will request you to put an end to his existence, or, if 
not, he will kill himself, bitterly lamenting the day where- 
in he was not put to death. Such was the mild and pru- 
dent answer of Apollonius, which prevailed on the King 
to remit the penalty of death to the eunuch. 



CHAP. XXXVIII. 

THE King, being minded to take the diversion of the chase, 
in a place set apart for his lions, bears, and panthers, 
asked Apollonius to accompany him ; who immediately 



said, Have you forgot, O King ! that I was never present 
at any of your sacrifices ? and if I was not, surely it would 
be less pleasing to me to lie in ambuscade to see wild 
beasts put to pain, and reduced to a state of captivity in 
opposition to their nature. The King once asked what 
was the best way of reigning with security, he replied, 
by honouring many, and trusting few. During tiis stay 
at Babylon, a governor of Syria # sent embassadors to the 
King to treat of two villages situate near Zeugma, which 
they said had been formerly subject to Antiochus and 
Seleucus, but at present were under his jurisdiction, 
though of right belonging to the Roman empire; that 
they were no longer molested by the incursions of Ara- 
bians and Armenians, yet that he in violation of all ancient 
limits had invaded them, and made them useful to himself, 
as if they were his own property, and not that of the 
Roman people. The embassadors being ordered to 
withdraw, the King said to ApoHonius, The two Kings 
to whom the embassadors have alluded, made a grant of 
these villages to my ancestors for the purpose of supplying 
them with wild beasts ; for whatever game was taken by 
us in hunting was sent to them across the Euphrates : but 
now forgetting all this, they think of nothing but new and 
unjust aggressions. What think you, ApoHonius, of this 
embassy ? I think it fair and moderate, returned he, inas- 
much as they are disposed to hold from your good will, 
what they can hold in spite of it, and what is at present 
in their possession. Besides, added ApoHonius, you should 
not for the sake of two villages that are intrinsically of 
less value than the private fortunes of some individuals, 
engage in a war with the Romans, which should not be un- 
dertaken for much more important considerations. In an 



* At this time Syria was a Roman Province, under the jurisdiction 
of a praetorian prefect. 






63 

illness the King had, we are informed Apollonius attended 
and spoke with so much eloquence on the nature of the 
soul, that he revived, and told those about him that Apol- 
lonius had not only made him despise his kingdom, but 
even death itself. 



# CHAP. XXXIX. 

WHEN the King shewed Apollonius the secret passage 
under the Euphrates, and asked him what he thought of 
such a wonderful piece of workmanship ? To check the 
pride of his imagination, he said, O King ! the wonder 
would be were you able to pass on foot over such a deep 
and unfordable river. At another time when he shewed 
him the walls of Ecbatana,* and told him the city was a 
dwelling fit for the Gods : not for the Gods, said Apollo- 
nius, and I am doubtful whether it is a dwelling fit for 
men, for the city of Lacedemon was built without walls. 
To the King, who in the administration of justice in one of 
his towns, boasted of having spent two days in the hearing 
of one cause, Apollonius said, I am sorry you were so 
long in finding out what was just. On the occasion of a 
great overflow of revenue, the King made an ostentatious 
display of it to Apollonius, from a wish he had of making 
him fond of riches, but he without expressing the least 
surprise at what he saw, said, O King! you look on 
all this revenue as so much wealth, I look on it as so 



* Herodotus says, the walls of Ecbatana were strong and ample, 
built in circles one within another, rising each above each by the height 
of their respective battlements. 

I agree with Olearius in thinking that these are the walls so de- 
scribed by Herodotus, to which our author alludes in the text. 



64 

much straw. But how, said the King, shall I place it 
to the best account ? By making a proper use of it, for 
you are a King. 

CHAP. XL. 

AFTER many discourses of this kind with the King, 
whom he found well-disposed to comply with his wishes, 
and saying what he thought sufficient to the Magi, he said, 
Come Damis, and let us pursue our journey to the In- 
dians. Persons who have sailed to the Lotophagi,* by eat- 
ing of the food peculiar to that country, have lost all relish 
of their own. But for ourselves, without having eaten of 
any thing here, we remain longer than what is either meet 
or becoming. I am exceedingly pleased with your deter- 
mination, cried Damis ; and yet, when I called to mind the 
time we calculated on, in the case of the lioness, I was 
patiently waiting its accomplishment, for of it there is 
expired but one year and four months ; at the same time 
I think, if we could get away, it would be right. — But, 
said Apollonius, The King will not let us leave him till 
after the full expiration of the eight months, as you see he 
is a courteous prince, and too good to reign over barba- 
rians. 



* The teDth we touch'd, by various errors tost, 
The land of Lotos, and the flow'ry coast, &c. 

The trees around them, all their fruit produce ; 
Lotos the name, divine nectareous juice : 
(Thence call'd Lotophagi) which whoso tastes, 
Insatiate riots in the sweet repasts ; 
Nor other home, nor other care intends, 
But quits his house, his country, and his friends. 

Odyssey, b. ix. 
Meninx— an island in the Mediterranean to the west of the Syrtis 
Minor— supposed to be Homer's country of the Lotophagi. For a 
particular account of the Lotos, see Col. Kennel's dissertation on the 
Geography of Herodotus. 



65 



CHAP. XLT. 

AS soon as Apollonius thought it time to set out, and had 
received the King's permission to do so, he recollected the 
boons he had foreborne to ask, till he had acquired more 
friends in the country. Whereupon he addressed the 
King, and said, Thou best of princes, 1 have shewn no 
mark whatever of favour to my host, and I feel myself 
besides under many obligations to the Magi. Them I 
beseech you for my sake to respect, for they are wise men, 
and much devoted to your service. With this the King 
was much pleased, and said, To-morrow you shall see 
these men made objects of emulation, and highly reward- 
ed. Though you require nothing which 1 can give you, 
permit at least those men who are with Damis (whom he 
pointed out) to accept of some part of my wealth, just 
as much as they may chuse. As soon as they heard these 
words, they all turned away, when Apollonius said, you 
see my hands,* O King ! though many, are all like each 
other. Since it is so, said the King, take, I pray thee, a 
guide for your journey, and camels to ride on ; the way is 
too long to make it all on foot. Be it as you desire, said 
Apollonius, for I am told the road is difficult without 
such conveyance, and the camel is an animal easily sup- 
ported, even where there is but little fodder. Water I 
suppose is likewise to be provided, and carried like wine 
in bags made of skins. For three days' journey, said the 
King, you will find the country without water; after- 
wards you will meet with both rivers and springs : your 
road is over Caucasus, on which you will find all kind of 



* My hands — this alludes to Damis, and his companions who ac- 
companied him on the journey— whose conduct on this occasion il- 
lustrated the English proverb, like master, like man. 



66 

accommodations, and the country hospitable. When the 
King asked what present he would bring him from thence, 
Apollonius answered, a most acceptable one, O King! 
for if I become wiser by the conversation of the men of 
that country, I shall return to you better than I leave you. 
— Whereupon the King embracing him, said, Go thy 
way — for the present will be great. 



BOOK II.— Contents. 

Mount Caucasus — Continuation of the journey of Apol- 
lonius to India — Particular account of the Elephant, 
fyc. — Passes the Indus — Description of Tarda, and 
its Temple — Some particulars of Porus — Conference 
with king Phraotes — Receives letters of recommenda- 
tion from him to the Wise Men, or Brachmans. 

CHAP. I. 

(JUR travellers began their journey in the summer, 
mounted on camels, and attended by a guide, who was 
one of the camel-drivers appointed by the King to take care 
of them on the way. The King provided them abundantly 
with what they wanted; and the country besides was rich 
through which they passed, and the several towns gave 
them a welcome reception ; for the camel that advanced in 
front carried on his forehead an ornament of gold, to shew 
to all that one of the King's friends was on the road. 



CHAP. II. 

WHEN they approached Caucasus, they say the country 
became quite odoriferous. This mountain we make the 
beginning of Taurus,* that, traversing Armenia and Ci- 
licia, extends to Pamphylia, and as far as Cape Mycale, 



* In such a continued chain of mountains as bear the name of 
Taurus, it is difficult to ascertain which belong to it, or which are only 
connected with it. D'Anyille says, that the chain of mountains deno- 
minated Taurus, runs in a line parallel to the Mediterranean, which it 
immediately commands at the Promontorium Sacrum ; and that after 
being intersected by the Euphrates, stretches even as far as India. 



6$ 

which ending in the sea of Caria, may properly be consi* 
dered as the termination, and not, as some think, the be- 
ginning of Caucasus. The height of Mycale* is not con- 
siderable ; but the tops of Mount Caucasusf rise so high, 
that the rays of the sun seem as if divided by them. With 
the other branch of Taurus, Caucasus embraces all that 
part of Scythia which borders on India, and stretches along 
the Maeotis and the left side of the Pontus, in length 
about two thousand stadia ; so great is the extent of coun- 
try which is compassed by an arm of Caucasus. But what 
is said of that Taurus which is so called by us, extending 
beyond Armenia (though this has been called in question) 
is now made apparent from the panthers which I know 
have been taken in the spice-bearing part of Pamphylia; 
for they, delighting in odors, which they scent at a great 
distance, quit Armenia, and cross the mountains in search 
of the tears of the storax,$ at the time when the wind 
blows from that quarter and the trees distil their gums. It 
is said a panther was once taken in Pamphylia, with a gold 
chain about its neck, on which was inscribed in Armenian 
letters, " Arsaces the King, to the Nysaean God." Arsaces 
was then King of Armenia, who is supposed to have given 
it its liberty on account of its magnitude, and in honour of 
Bacchus, who amongst the Indians is called Nysius, from 



* Mycale, in Caria, is the beginning of Taurus, and not its 
ending. 

t This Olearius explains, by saying, that to the west of Caucasus it 
is dark some time after the sun has risen, and enlightning the countries 
to the east of the mountain. 

% Pliny mentions the lachrymce Styracis. The styrax or storax, he 
says, grows in Syria, which borders on Judea. The tree which pro- 
duces this liquor is called also styrax, or storax. It is like the quince- 
tree in form and leaf, is hollow like a reed, from which the juice called 
storax distils. Pliny mentions the styrax of Pamphylia as a tree 
which produces a juice less in quantity, and of a somewhat bitter 
flavour. 



60 

Nysa,* one of their towns : this, however, is an appellation 
which he bears amongst all the oriental nations. This pan- 
ther became subject to man, and grew so tame, that it was 
patted and caressed by every one. But on the approach 
of spring, a season when panthers become susceptible of 
love, it felt the general passion, and rushed with fury into 
the mountains in quest of a mate, with the gold chain about 
its neck; and was taken in the lower part of Taurus, at- 
tracted by the odour of the spices. Caucasus bounds the 
land of Judea and Media, and by another arm descends 
to the Red Sea. 

CHAP. III. 

THE barbarians talk of Caucasus in their stories as the 
Greeks do. How, for instance, Prometheusf was bound 
to it for his love to mankind, and how a person of the 
name of Hercules (but not of Thebes) indignant at the 
treatment he received, shot the bird with his arrows, which 
Prometheus fed with his bowels. Some accounts say he 
was bound in a cave, which is still shewn among the pro- 
minences of the mountain ; and, according to Damis'sJ 



* Nysa was a town which merited the notice of Alexander. Its 
foundation was ascribed to Dionysius, or Bacchus, in his Indian expedi- 
tion ; and Indian traditions mentions Mysada-buram, that is, the town 
of Nysa; it is in the hither India, situate between the rivers Copheu 
and the Indus. 

t The chaining of Prometheus is placed by the Greek writers not in 
the Caucasus of India, but in that which lies between the Palus 
Maeotis and the Caspian Sea ; therefore if that is so, Damis must have 
been mistaken in saying he saw the chains where he did. 

$ Of the integrity of this Damis, says Naudaeus, in his History of 
Magic, we are not to make the least account, since he is so impudent 
as to affirm in Philostratus that he had seen the chains wherewith Pro- 
metheus had been fastened to Mount Caucasus, which were yet in the 
stones, when he passed it with Apollonius, who was travelling to the 
Indies. 



. 



70 

relation, the chains are to be seen hanging from the rock 
with which he was tied ; chains, which it is not easy to say 
of what matter they are made. Other accounts say he 
was chained to the summit of the mountain, which has 
two tops, to one of which each hand was fastened, though 
the intermediate distance was not less than a stadium, so 
immense was his stature. The dwellers on Caucasus con- 
sider the eagles their enemies, and burn all the nests they 
find of them among the rocks, shooting at them fiery darts. 
They also set snares for them, saying it is in revenge of 
Prometheus; such is the effect which this fable has on 
their minds. 

CHAP. IV. 

OUR travellers, when they passed Mount Caucasus, say 
they saw men of the height of four cubits, and of a black 
colour; and on approaching the river Indus, some of five 
cubits. They say besides, that in their way to this river 
some occurrences took place which deserve to be noticed. 
One was, that whilst travelling in a clear moonlight night, 
they saw the figure of an Empusa,* which assumed a va- 
riety of shapes, and then totally disappeared. Apollonius, 
who knew what it was, rebuked the Empusa, and advised 



* Empusa, a spectre that could transform itself into any shape, and 
sometimes assumed that of a woman, as Aristophanes says in his play 
of the frogs. From its having but one leg, as its name signified, it 
always appeared hopping — henee hop goblin, or hob goblin according to 
Wallis and Junius. Empusa is the name given by Demosthenes to 
Glaucothea, the mother of JEschines, from the variety of characters 
which she assumed for the sake of gain. Lucian, in his Treatise on 
Dancing, says, we have reason to suppose that Empusa also, who could 
throw herself into such a variety of shapes, was likewise some excel- 
lent proficient in this art Some writers confound the Empusa with 
Hecate. Eustathius derives the name from her walking on one foot. 
Aristophanes in his Frogs gives her two feet, of which one is of iron, 
and the other the foot of an ass. 



71 



his attendants to do the same, for that such mode of treat- 
ment was a sure remedy against all insult : whereupon the 
jpectrum fled, shrieking like a ghost. 



CHAP. V. 

WHILST they were passing the tops of the mountain on 
foot, on account of the surrounding precipices, Apollo- 
nius had the following dialogue* with Damis. Pray tell 
me Damis where were we yesterday ? On the plain, said 
he. And to-day where are we ? On Caucasus, if I am 
not mistaken. When, asked Apollonius, were you in a 
lower situation? I think this hardly worth asking, said 
Damis; for yesterday we were in a valley, and to-day on 
ground not far distant from heaven. Then, added Apollo- 
nius, you think, Damis, yesterday's journey was what is 
called Below, and this day's Above. I do, said Damis, if 
I am in my right mind. In what respect, then, said Apol- 
lonius, do you think that these ways differ the one from 
the other ? or wherein do you suppose this day's journey 
has the advantage of that of yesterday? In this, said 
Damis — that yesterday's journey has been made by many 
travellers as well as by us ; but that this day's journey has 
been made but by few.f Even in a city, said Apollonius. 



* From this dialogue, and others of a similar nature, Parker, Bishopi ^t^c^ccuuJL 
of Oxford, was inclined to think that Apollonius had picked up Damis) 
as a fit Sancho Pancha to exercise his wit upon. For upon all occa-j &* LyJuAo^**. 
gions, says the Bishop, we find him not only baffling the Esquire hi / J 
disputes, but breaking jests upon him, which he always takes with much 
thankfulness, and more humility, still admiring his master's wisdom, vL^-~'>+*~* 
but more his wit. 

t This alludes to a well known symbol of Pythagoras, which says, 
" Declining high-ways, walk in path ways." Leave the public popular 
course of life, and pursue that which is separate and divine. He who | 
is attached to the wisdom of Pythagoras, may be alone in the middle of | 
the forum. 



n 

one may live far from the noise of men, in places frequent- 
ed by few. I did not allude to this, replied Damis; but I 
affirmed, that yesterday we travelled through populous vil- 
lages, and to-day through regions untrodden by human 
foot; regions esteemed divine and holy; for from our 
guide we learn, that the barbarians esteem them the dwel- 
lings of the gods ; and saying this, he lifted up his eyes to 
the summit of the mountain. Hereupon Apollonius re- 
turning to the original question, said, Can you tell me, 
Damis, what knowledge you have acquired of the divine 
nature by being nearer heaven ? None, said Damis. And 
yet you thought, continued Apollonius, that by being ele- 
vated to such a height above the surface of the earth, you 
would have given us more distinct ideas of the heavens, and 
of the sun, and of the moon, which you imagined you 
might have touched with your wand from the situation to 
which you were raised. What I knew yesterday, said 
Damis, of the divine nature, I know also to-day, without 
the addition of any new idea. Then, said Apollonius, you 
are still, Damis, what we called Below, and have learnt 
nothing by being Above ; and you are as far from heaven 
to-day as you were yesterday; therefore the question I 
asked at first was a pertinent one, though you thought it 
ridiculous. The truth is, said Damis, I did think I should 
have come down wiser, particularly when I remembered 
to have heard that Anaxagoras the Clazomenian made his 
celestial observations from Mimas in Ionia, and Thales the 
Milesian from Mycale in its neighbourhood. Some are 
said to have used Pangeus as an observatory, and others 
mount Athos. But for myself, I fear I shall not descend 
a whit wiser than I ascended, though I have gone up a 
mountain higher than either of them. Nor did they, re- 
plied Apollonius; for what can such observations avail — 
they may shew the heavens of a more azure colour, the 
stars of a greater magnitude, and the sun rising put of night 
— rphenomena all known to the goatherds and shepherds of 



7^ 

the country. But in what manner a supreme Being super- 
intends the human race, and how he delights to be wor- 
shipped ; what is virtue, justice, and temperance, neither 
will Adios shew to those who climb its summit, nor Olym- 
pus, so renowned in song, if the soul does not make such 
discussions the objects of its contemplation ; and if it does 
engage in such topics pure and undefiled, I will not hesi- 
tate to assert, that it will rise far above Caucasus itself. 



CHAP. VI. 

HAVING now passed this mountain, they saw for the 
first time men mounted on elephants, who dwell between 
Caucasus and the river Cophen. # These men are of rude 
manners, and have the care of herds of elephants, which 
they use as cavalry. Some of them rode on camels, 
which the Indians keep for carrying their dispatches. 
These animals travel a thousand stadia a day, and, it is said, 
without ever bending the knee, or taking any rest. An 
Indian who rode on one of them, advanced and asked the 
guide whither they were going ? When told the object of 
their journey, he mentioned it to the rest of his companions, 
who were called Nomades. They raised a cry like people 
who had pleasure in what they heard, and immediately or- 
dered Apollonius and his companions to draw near, which 
when they did, they offered them some wine and honey, 
both the produce of the palm-tree, and some raw pieces 
of lion'sf and panther's flesh. Our travellers accepted all 



* Cophen, or Cophes, is a river which, rising in Paropamisus, runs 
into the Indies below Taxila. It is supposed to be the same with the 
Coas or Cohes which Alexander met with, and is now known by its 
actual name, which is, the Com?. 

t The wandering Arabs are exempted from paying tribute to either 
Tunis or Algiers, on account of their being obliged by the institution 

of 



74 

but the flesh, and then passing by them, journeyed on to- 
wards the east. 



CHAP. VII. 

WHILST they were eating their frugal meal by a foun- 
tain of clear water, Damis poured out part of the wine he 
got from the Indians, and said, I pledge you, Apollonius, 
in this cup, in honour of Jupiter Salvator, of which I 
think you may drink, though you have long declined the 
use of wine ; for you will not refuse drinking it, as you do 
what is extracted from the vine : After saying this, he made 
a libation in consequence of having mentioned the name of 
Jupiter. Apollonius turning to Damis with a smile, said, 
Do we not abstain from money ? We do, as your conduct 
has often evinced. What, said Apollonius, shall we touch 
neither gold nor silver, nor suffer ourselves to be tempted 
by money, so much desired by Kings and people ; and yet, 
if offered brass money for silver, or what is counterfeit and 
adulterate for what is sterling, shall we accept it merely 
from its not being such as is in general use among men? 
The coin used by the Indians is made of orichalcum and 
black brass ; it is what passes current with all merchants 
who trade in these parts. Suppose, Damis, these honest 
Nomades had offered us this species ; would not you, had 
you seen me refusing it, have advised me against it, and 
have told me that that only can be reckoned as money 
which is coined by the Romans and the King of the Medes; 
but that what passes as money, and is in use with the In- 
dians, is quite a different thing. And now suppose, Damis, 



of their founder to eat lion's flesh for their daily food. Bruce mentions 
his having eaten of three different aged lions, of which none were to- 
lerable. 



75 

I had suffered myself to be persuaded by such reasoning, 
what would you have said of me ? Would I not have ap- 
peared in your eyes adulterate, and more dishonourable in 
casting away my philosophy, than the cowardly soldier who 
casts away his shield. And yet the man who so parts with 
his shield may get another, not inferior to the one he has 
lost, in the opinion of Archilochus. But how, say you, is 
philosophy to be recovered by one who has despised and 
rejected her ? Bacchus will pardon me if I abstain en- 
tirely from wine ; but should I drink of that wine which 
comes from the date in preference to what comes from the 
vine, would he not with justice be angry with me, and say 
his gifts were despised by me ? At present we are not far 
from the God, and you hear from our guide that the moun- 
tain Nysa is at hand, on which Bacchus performs many 
miracles. Men, Damis, are not only intoxicated with the 
juice of the grape, but with that of the date, and are 
driven into madness by drinking it. You have seen many 
of the Indians so affected, some of whom dance and sing 
and reel to and fro, and stagger like men who have sat up 
the whole night carousing. But that you look on this po- 
tion as wine, is plain from the libation you have made to 
Jupiter, and the usual prayers offered up on the occasion. 
So much, Damis, have I said in my defence, for I wish 
not to prohibit you or your companions from drinking it; 
on the contrary, I will give you the permission of eating 
flesh, as I see the abstaining from it has profited you no- 
thing ; but for myself, I find such abstinence suitable to 
me in the practice of that philosophy to which I have ad- 
dicted myself from my youth. This discourse was listened 
to with pleasure by Damis and his companions, who were 
not displeased to hear of the permission granted, conceiv- 
ing very naturally that they would be the better able to en- 
dure the journey by means of such good fare. 



76 



CHAP. VIII. 

AFTER this our travellers crossed the river Cophen irt 
boats (their camels having passed by a ford where the river 
was not very deep) and entered a district which acknow- 
ledged the King's authority; where the mountain Nysa rises 
in plantations from the bottom to the top, like Tmolus in 
Lydia, and is to be ascended by paths cut in it for the 
purposes of agriculture. When they reached the top of it 
they discovered a temple which Bacchus had built for 
himself, and planted round with laurels. It was but an in- 
different one, as the ground did not admit of a better. 
They say he planted ivy and vines round the laurels, and in 
the center erected a statue of himself, from a supposition 
that in time the trees would meet at the top, and form a 
regular roof over it, which was the case when they arrived, 
for the branches were so interwoven that neither rain or 
wind could penetrate or injure the temple. Sickles, and 
baskets, and wine presses, and all the other necessary imple- 
ments, made of gold and silver, were hung up in honour of 
the God, as if he was a wine-dresser. This statue bore the 
likeness of an Indian boy, and was made of white marble. 
The report of the country is, that whilst Bacchus is per- 
forming his orgies, and making Nysa shake with his pre- 
sence, the cities beneath hear him and tremble. 



CHAP. IX. 

THE Greeks and Indians have different opinions about 
Bacchus, and the Indians themselves vary with each other 
on the subject. We say that the Theban Bacchus made 
an expedition into India, where he discharged both the 
duties of a soldier and the rites of a Bacchanalian. Be- 



77 

sides other arguments to prove this, we have a donative, 
which is still preserved among the treasures of Delphi, 
where a Discus is shewn, made of Indian silver, engraved 
with the following inscription: " Bacchus, the son of 
Semele and Jupiter, from the Indians to Apollo at Del- 
phi." But the Indians who dwell in the vicinity of Cau- 
casus and the river Cophenus say, it was an Assyrian who 
made this expedition, and who was Well acquainted with 
the history of the Theban Bacchus. The Indians who 
dwell in the district between the Indus and the Hydraotes, 
and the parts beyond as far as the Ganges, affirm that Bac- 
chus was the son of the river Indus ; that the Theban Bac- 
chus was his disciple, who first introduced the use of the 
Thyrsus and the Orgies ; and that he was the son of Jupi- 
ter, who lived in his father's thigh till the ordinary time of 
delivery ; and that there was a mountain near Nysa called 
Meros. To this is added, that shoots of the vine were 
carried from Thebes and planted on Nysa, in honour of 
Bacchus, and that it was there that Alexander celebrated 
the orgies. But the inhabitants in and about Nysa affirm, 
that Alexander did not ascend the mountain, though from 
motives of ambition and love of antiquity he was anxious to 
do it, fearing lest his Macedonians, if once they tasted of 
the juice of the grape, of which they had not drank for a 
long time, might be disposed to return home, or might re- 
vive their love of wine, after being so long used to water. 
From this consideration, he passed by Nysa, satisfied with 
having offered up prayers and sacrifices to Bacchus at the 
foot of the mountain.* I know what I write will not be 
pleasing to some people, because all who served under 
Alexander have not confined themselves to what is strictly 
true. But truth in history is indispensible, to which had 



* See the accounts of Quintus Curtius and Arrian on Alexander's 
conduct at Nysa, from both of which Philostratus differs. 



78 

they adhered, Alexander would not have been robbed of 
his due praise ; for I think that his not going up the moun- 
tain, from the motive of keeping sobriety in his army, re- 
dounded more to his honour than had he done it, as they 
say, and committed all the frantic actions attributed to 
him. 

CHAP. X. 

DAMIS writes, he did not see the rock Aornos, though 
it was not far from Nysa. As it lay not exactly in this 
route, their guide was afraid of turning out of the direct 
road. He says, he heard it had been taken by Alexander, 
and was called Aornos, not from its being fifteen stadia 
high, (for the sacred birds are seen to fly much higher 
than it) but from the circumstance of its having an aper- 
ture* on its top, which is said to attract all birds that fly 
about it, not unlike what is observed in the vestibule of 
the Parthenonf at Athens, and in many places of Phrygia 
and Lydia. Hence the rock was called Aornos, and was 
destitute of birds. 



* This aperture in the rock, Olearius supposes, was the spring of water 
mentioned by Arrian in his description of it. B. iv. c. 28. — But Arrian 
says, the water was pure ; wherein he differs from Philostratus, who 
makes it deadly to birds, and hence its name of Aornos. 



t At Athens, where Minerva's temple stands, 
There never crow nor boding raven flies, 
Not tlio' the fat, and oily sacrifice 
Allure his smell, and call his willing eyes. 
Not that he fears Minerva's vain pretence, 
Or banish'd from her train for an offence ; 
But 'tis the noxious vapour drives him thence. 



79 



CHAP. XI. 

IN travelling towards the Indus, they met a boy mounted 
on an elephant, to which he was applying his goad with 
some severity. Apollonius surprised at this, said, What 
is the duty, Damis, of a good horseman ? What else, re- 
plied he, than to sit well on his horse, to manage him ex- 
pertly with the rein, to curb him, if unruly, and, above 
all things, to take care in passing through swampy and 
marshy ground, not to let him sink in it. What, said Apol- 
lonius, is nothing else required of a good horseman I Yes, 
there is, said Damis ; a good horseman is to loosen the 
reins in going up hill, and tighten them in coming down; 
he is sometimes to stroke his mane and ears, and not al- 
ways use the whip. I should commend the man who rode 
in this way. But what are the qualifications that merit 
most praise in the man who rides a war-horse prepared for 
battle? The same I have mentioned, Apollonius, with 
the additional ones of knowing how to attack the enemy 
and defend himself; how to charge and retreat with safety; 
and lastly, how to accustom his horse not to be frightened 
with the clashing of shields, or brightness of helmets, or 
sound of trumpets, or shouting of the combatants ; for to 
know all this is necessary for the horseman. And what is 
your opinion, said Apollonius, of the boy who rides the 
elephant?* That he is a much greater object of admira- 
tion than the horseman described; for that a child should 
manage a creature of such prodigious bulk, and guide him 



* The man who conducts the elephant generally rides on his neck, 
and uses an iron rod, hooked at the end, or a bodkin, with which he 
pricks the head or sides of the ears, in order to push the creature for- 
ward, or to make him turn. Buffon. 

Elephants allow themselves to be led, and commanded by a child. 

Same. 



Ml 

with a sort of shepherd's crook, which you see him casting 
on his back like an anchor, and that this child should not be 
afraid of his look, figure, or size, appears to me so wonder- 
ful, that had I heard it from another, I call to Minerva to 
witness, I should not have believed it. Now, said Apollo- 
nius, suppose the boy was to be set up for sale, would you 
buy him, Damis? Certainly, said he, was I to give all I 
am worth for him ; for to be able to govern one of the 
largest animals in the world, as if a captured citadel, gives 
one the idea of the generous and noble disposition of the 
boy. But if you did purchase him, said Apollonius, what 
would you do with him without the elephant? I would set 
him over my house and servants, as I think he would go- 
vern them better than I do myself. But do you think 
yourself, said Apollonius, unequal to the task of managing 
your own affairs? I am not more unequal than yourself, 
replied Damis ; for you know 7 I have left all to wander up 
and down with you, addicted to the study of philosophy, 
and only anxious to learn what is doing abroad. But sup- 
pose, said Apollonius, you purchased the boy, and had 
two horses, the one fit for running, and the other for war, 
would you set him indifferently on both ? I should, per- 
haps, set him on the race-horse, as I see ohter men do the 
same ; for is it to be supposed he could ride a war-horse, 
trained and ready for the field, who is not able to carry a 
shield, or a breast-plate, or a helmet; things so necessary 
for the rider? And how should he be able to brandish a 
spear, who has not strength to throw a dart or shoot an 
arrow, and who has not yet lost the lisping accent of a 
child. Then, said Apollonius, I suppose it is something 
else which directs and puts the elephant in motion, and not 
the boy, whom you so much admire. But what can it be, 
said Damis, for I see nothing on his back except the boy ?* 

* The elephant, when tamed, becomes the most gentle and most 
obedient of all domestic animals. He is so fond of his keeper, that he 

caresses 



81 

Of all creatures, said Apollonius, the elephant is the most 
docile, and when once accustomed to submit to man, he 
bears all things from him ; he conforms to his taste, and 
loves to be fed out of his hand like a favourite dog. 
When his keeper approaches you will see him fawning on 
him with his trunk, and letting him put his head into his 
mouth, which he keeps open as long as he likes, and which 
we saw practised among the Nomades. But at night he 
is said to bewail his servitude, not with a loud noise, as at 
other times, but with a low, and piteous murmur. And 
if a man happens to surprise him in this situation, he 
restrains his sorrow as if he were ashamed. For which 
reason, said Apollonius, it is the elephant who governs 
himself, and the bent of his own docile nature, which 
influences his conduct more than the boy on his back who 
seems to manage him. 



CHAP. XII. 

ON coming to the river Indus, they say they saw a drove 
of elephants swimming across it, and learnt the following 
account of them, namely, that some live in marshy 
ground, others in the mountains, and some in the plains : 
and that all are taken for the purposes of war, # and fight 
with towers on their backs, which are capable of holding 
from ten to fifteen men, who from them, as from turreted 
gates, shoot their arrows, and dart their javelins. The 
animal himself uses his trunk as a hand in throwing missive 
weapons. In proportion as a Libyan elephant surpasses in 



caresses him ; and anticipates his commands by foreseeiug every thing 
that will please. Buffon. 

* Of all animals, the elephant is the most serviceable in war ; for he 
can easily carry four men armed with muskets, bows, or spears. 

Note in Buffon* 
G 



bulk a Nysaean horse, so does an Indian elephant surpass 
one of Libya.* Some writers have noticed the age of the 
elephant, and its great longevity,-}- and assert they acci- 
dentally met with one near Taxila, (one of the largest 
towns in India) which the inhabitants perfumed with sweet 
odors and adorned with garlands .J He was said to be 
one of those elephants who fought under King Porus 
against Alexander, and by reason of his gallant exploits in 
the field, was dedicated to the sun by the Macedonians. 
He had round his teeth, or horns,§ rings of gold, on 
which were inscribed Greek characters to this effect, 
" Alexander, the son of Jupiter dedicates Ajax to the 
sun." Ajax was the name given to the elephant by Alex- 
ander ; || thinking he -was entitled to this distinguished 
appellation. The natives of the place computed three 
hundred and fifty years from the battle, without taking 
into the account his age at the time it was fought. 

CHAP. XIII. 

JUBA,ff who was formerly King of Libya, says in his 
history, that the Libyans had once a battle in which they 



* In general the elephants of Asia exceed in size, strength, &c. those 
of Africa. 

+ If captive elephants live 120, or 130 years, those winch are free, 
and enjoy all the rights of nature, ought to exist at least 200. 

% At festivals elephants' tusks are ornamented with rings of gold and 
silver — their ears and cheeks are painted, they are crowned with gar- 
lands, and a uumber of little bells are fixed on different parts of their 
body. Buffon. 

§ As some people call them. 

j| Alexander the Great was the first European who ever mounted an 
elephant. Those which he took from Porus, he caused to be brought 
into Greece, and they were perhaps the same which Pyrrhus several 
years after employed against the Romans in the Tarentine war, and 
with which Curius Dentatus came triumphant into Rome. Buffon. 

Notwithstanding the authority of Buffon, I think it may be doubted 
whether they were the same. 

tt Juba the historian was son of Juba the first King of Numidia, 

and 






83 

rode on elephants, that the elephants were divided into 
two parties, and that the tusks of one of the parties were 
marked with the figure of a turret, and those of the other 
were not. When night came on, which ended the fray, 
this writer adds, that the turretted party were worsted, 
and fled to mount Atlas, and that he who did not live till 
four hundred years after, caught one of the fugitives, 
which still retained the impression of the turret, without its 
being worn away by time, Juba thinks the tusks of ele- 
phants are to be looked on as horns,* because, like the 
temples, they grow from the scull, and are not contiguous, 
like the teeth of other animals ; and next, because they con- 
tinue in the state they first grow, and do not shed and 
grow again, like teeth in general. However, I do not 
agree in opinion with this author : for horns, if not all, at 
least those of stags, shed and grow again. As for teeth, 
such as are human, drop and grow again, but no animal 
whose teeth are outstanding^ or canine, drop of them- 
selves ; or if they do, ever come again ; for nature has set 
them in the jaws, as armour for their protection. To 
this may be added, that every year a circular ring is formed 
at the extremities of horns, as is visible in those of goats, 
sheep, and oxen. Teeth from the first are smooth, and 
if not broken, remain so, seeing that they appear to be of 



and Mauritania. He was led to Rome among the captives to adorn 
the triumph of Caesar. His captivity was the source of the greatest 
honours, and his application to study procured him more glory than he 
could have obtained from the inheritance of a kingdom. He wrote the 
history of Rome in Greek, of which but few fragments remain. He 
wrote on the nature of animals, from which I suppose Philostratus 
has taken his information in the text. 

* But Herodotus, says Pliny, who wrote long before Juba, called 
them denteSy and not cornua. 

t Hence no conclusion can be drawn from the text whether they 
are horns or not. 

G 2 



84 

a strong nature and substance. Horns are peculiar only 
to such animals as divide the hoof. The elephant has five 
toes,* the sole of the foot, consisting of several divisions, 
which are united by soft membranes, as if nature intended 
him to stand only on moist ground. Besides, nature in 
supplying all horned creatures with bones that are perfo- 
rated, has joined a kind of horny substance to each : but 
the ivory of the elephant is formed complete, and in all 
parts uniform ; and yet, if nicely examined, a small aper- 
ture will be found in it, as is in teeth. The teeth of 
elephants living in marshy grounds are livid, porous, and 
not easily manufactured, an account of the many cavities 
and excrescences which obstruct the artist. The teeth of 
those living in the mountains, f are smaller than the last, 
but then they are very white, and capable of being wrought. 
The best of all are the teeth of those elephants that live 
in the plains, because they are the largest, whitest, most 
easily manufactured, and take whatever shape the hand 
of the artist is pleased to give them. If we were disposed 
to describe the manners of the elephants, we • might take 
our account from the Indians, who reckon those of the 
marsh light and giddy, of the mountain obstinate and 
treacherous, and not to be relied on, unless they stand in 
need of our assistance: and those of the plain, gentle, 
tractable, and easily instructed.;]: These are the elephants 
who write and dance,§ and move with great agility to the 



* The short foot of the elephant is divided into five toes, which are 
so covered with the skin as not to be visible. Buffon. 

t BufFon differs from Philostratus in his account of the mountain 
elephant, he says the strongest, and most courageous of the species, 
and which have the largest tusks, are called mountain elephants. 

$ The elephant soon learns to comprehend signs, and even to under- 
stand the expression of sounds. He never mistakes the voice of his 
master. 

§ He learns to trace regular characters with an instrument as small 

a? 



85 

sound of a pipe, and sometimes even spring from the 
ground. 

CHAP. XIV. 

WHEN Apollonius saw the elephants passing the river, 
and the whole troop, which consisted of about thirty, un- 
der the direction of the smallest among them ; and when 
he saw the largest carrying their young on their prominent 
teeth, and girthing them with their trunks, as if with a 
band, he said to Damis, all this they do without any 
orders, all by their own natural prudence and discretion. 
You see how after the manner of porters* they take up 
their young, and how secure they carry them. I see it, 
answered Damis, and I see how wisely and prudently they 
do it. Whence then arises that silly dispute among idle 
cavillers, whether the love of parents for their young is na- 
tural or not ? The voice of these elephants crieth that it 
is natural, who have not learnt what they do by living 
among men, as they have learnt other things. It comes 
from instinct, together with that provident care which 
makes them so solicitous to supply their young with food, 
and with all they want. And this you may assert, said 
Apollonius, not of the elephant alone, which makes the 
nearest approaches to man in prudence and council ; but 
of the bear, which merits more consideration, who, 
though one of the most savage of beasts,f does all she 



as a qnill. — Both Pliny and JElian speak of their writing and dancing, 
if the making quosdam inconditos motus, can be termed dancing — says 
the former. 

Buffon says they delight in the sound of musical instruments, and 
move in cadence to the trumpet and tabor. 

* The moUiers carry their young firmly embraced in their trunks. 

Buffon. 

t The females seem to love their offspring with an astonishing ar- 
dour. They fight, and expose themselves to every peril in order to 

save 



86 

can for her young. Even among wolves* who are only in- 
tent on plunder, you will find the female protecting her 
young, while the male is abroad in search of food for 
their preservation. In like manner it may be observed of 
panthers, who by reason of the natural heat of their con- 
stitution, are most anxious to become dams, from the 
circumstance of their then ruling the males, and manag- 
ing the affairs of the family ; whilst the males in the mean- 
time suffer all things for the sake of their young. There 
is a story told of the lioness, that she draws the leopard 
into a love-intrigue, and takes him to the lion's lair in the 
• open fields ; but afterwards, when the time of her delivery 
draws nigh, she retires to the mountains, and there brings 
forth her young, which from their being spotted like their 
sire, she conceals, and nourishes in the most secret thick- 
ets, pretending that she absents herself for the sake of 
hunting; for if the lion happens to discover them, he 
tears them to pieces, as being illegitimate. I suppose you 
recollect some of Homer's lions,+ who with stern coun- 
tenance watch their young, and collect all their strength 
when they prepare themselves for battle. The tigressj 



save their young ; who are not unformed for some time after birth, as 
the ancients alleged j but grow nearly as quick as other animals. 

Buffon. 
* Though like other females, the she-wolf is naturally more timid 
than the male, yet when her young are attacked she defends them 
with intrepidity — and never leaves them till their education is fi- 
nished. Blffon. 
t Thus in the center of some gloomy wood, 
"With many a step the lioness surrounds 
Her tawny young, beset by men and hounds ; 
Elate her heart, and rousing all her pow'rs, 
Dark o'er the fiery balls each hanging eye-brow low'rs. 

Homer, b. xvii. 

t The rage of the tigress rises to the utmost when robbed of her 
young. 



87 

of the iiercest animals in the parts bordering on the 
Red Sea, is said to run to the ships when lying at anchor 
in search of her young, and if found, returns with joy ; 
but if the ships have sailed, she moans her young on the 
shore, and sometimes even dies of grief for the loss of 
them.* Who is unacquainted with the manners of birds ? 
to instance only the eagle and stork, who never build their 
nests without putting into them, the one an eagle stone,f 
and the other the lychnites ;J and all this done to assist 
them in hatching their eggs, and driving away the serpents. 
If we take into consideration the living creatures of the 
sea, we shall not greatly admire the attachment of the 
dolphins to their young, on account of their natural bene- 
volence. But whales, and sea-calves,§ and the race of 
noxious fish, shall we not make them the subjects of our 
admiration ? When I was at JEgae, I saw a sea-calf that 
was kept for the purpose of going out and hunting with 
dogs ; the sea-calf I saw bewailing her dead young, and 
for three days together abstaining from food, though one of 
the most voracious of marine creatures. Whenever the 
whale is compelled to fly without being able to defend her 
young, she hides them in the cavities of her jaws. Even 



* When all hope of recovering her young is lost, she expresses the 
exquisiteness of her sorrow by dismal and hideous bowlings, which ex- 
cite terror wherever they reach. 

t Aetites — called from atros, an eagle — from being supposed to be 
found in the eagle's nest. — There are many wonderful virtues ascribed 
to this stone by Galen, Pliny, &c. but they seem to be entirely found- 
ed on superstition and fancy, and accordingly it is, I believe, never 
used in the present practice of physic. What is now called an eagle 
stone is one which has a loose nucleus rattling within it. 

X Lychnites— called from the resemblance it bears to the blaze of a 
candle, which gives a singular grace to it and makes it very rich, — 
Pliny.— But why chosen by the stork I cannot learn? 

$ See Pliny— b. ix. c. 8. for an account of the attachment of the 
Dolphin for her young— for that of whales, b. ix. c. 6.— and for that ot 
phocas or seal-calves — c. 13, same book. 



88 

the viper has been seen licking the young serpents she had 
brought forth, and polishing them with her tongue. Far 
be it from us, Damis, to give credit to the foolish story,* 
which says, that the young of vipers are produced without 
a mother — a phenomenon supported by neither nature 
nor experience. 1 hope, said Damis, resuming the con- 
versation, you will allow Euripides to be praised for that 
iambic, which he puts in the mouth of Andromache, 
" Man lives in his offspring." I allow it, said Apollonius, 
for I think it wisely and divinely spoken, but he would 
have spoken more wisely, and with more truth, had he 
applied the sentiment to all living creatures. Then you 
are of opinion, said Damis, it would have run better 
thus, " Every living creature lives in its offspring ;" I do 
agree with you in this, said Apollonius, for it is more con- 
sonant to truth. 



CHAP. XV. 

BUT tell me Apollonius, did we not say in the beginning 
of this discourse of elephants, that there is a wisdom and 
understanding in what they do. We did so, Damis, said 
Apollonius, and with reason, for if an intelligence did not 
govern them, they could not subsist, nor the nations among 
whom they live. .And if that is so, replied Damis, why 
do they pass the river in a way so imprudent and disad- 
vantageous to themselves. The least of all goes first, the 
rest follow according to their several sizes, and the largest 
brings up the rear. Whereas, for my part, I think the di- 
rect reverse houjd be practised. The largest should 
march in front, and make themselves a wall and rampart 



* The foolish story may be found in Herodotus— (Thalia)*-and is 
entirely fabulous. 









89 

to defend the rest. But, said Apollonius, they seem to 
me to fly from an enemy, whom perhaps we shall meet 
pursuing them by the print of their feet — and if that is so, 
their rear should be well secured against their pursuers, as 
is done in war, and of all creatures you will find the ele- 
phant the most observant of military tactics. Besides, if 
the largest passed first, their passing would not enable the 
rest to judge whether the depth of the water would suffer 
them to follow ; for in that case, the passage would be 
easy and practicable to such as were tall, and difficult and 
dangerous to those tkat were not. But if the smallest 
were to pass, we might be sure the rest would have no 
difficulty in following. Moreover, if the largest went 
first, they would deepen the channel of the river to the 
small, for the mud and slime must necessarily be sunk, 
and formed into excavations, by reason of their great 
weight, and the bulk of their feet; whereas the lesser 
will not hinder the passage of the greater by any obstruc- 
tions they can raise in the way.* 



CHAP. XVI. 

I HAVE found also in the writings of Juba, that ele- 
phants mutually assist each other when hunted ; and if one 
is wounded, he is defended by the rest, and if they are so 
fortunate as to be able to extract the weapon from the 
wound, they anoint it with the tears of the aloe, and stand 
round him, as if they were so many physicians. Many 



* Pliny says, the elephants march always in troops. The eldest of 
them leads the van, and the next to him in age brings up the rear. 
When they are about to pass a river they make the least of their com- 
pany pass foremost, from an apprehension, that if the biggest went 
first, they would, by treading the bed of the river, make the ford the 
deeper.— B. viii. c. 5. 



90 

philosophical discourses of this kind they had together, 
most of which were taken from such occurrences of the 
day as deserved to be noticed. 



CHAP. XVII. 

THE account set down by Nearchus, and Python,* con- 
cerning the Acesines and its junction with the Indus, and 
of its producing serpents*)* seventy cubits long, was found 
to be correct. I mean, however, fp defer what I have to 
say on the subject of serpents, till I come to speak of the 
manner of hunting them which is given by Damis. When 
our travellers approached the Indus, and were ready to 
pass it, they asked the Babylonian, their guide, if he 
knew any thing of its passage? He said not, as he had 
never passed it, and therefore knew not whether it was 
fordable or not. And why did you not, said they, provide 
yourself with a guide ? Because, replied he, I have one 
here who will direct you. Whereupon he produced a let- 
ter which served all the purposes of a guide, and for this 
mark of attention Bardanes was highly commended. For 
he had written a letter to the Satrap to whom the depart- 
ment of the Indus was committed (though it was not 
within his jurisdiction) and in it reminded him of former 
favours without adverting to any recompense for them, as 
all requitals for favours conferred were not agreeable to his 
established custom : at the same time however he said, if 
he treated Apollonius well, and conveyed him wherever 



* Nearchus, an officer of Alexander in his Indian expedition. He 
was ordered to sail upon the Indian ocean with Onesicritus, and to ex- 
amine it. — He wrote an account of this voyage, to which Philostratus 
here alludes. 

t The name of Python is not set down by Rooke in his list of the 
writers of the Alexandrine history. 



91 

he wished, he would hold himself his debtor for such a 
mark of courtesy. He had besides given the guide gold, 
to be used only in cases of necessity, and to prevent all 
application to strangers. When the Indian received the 
letter, he said he valued it highly, and should honour 
Apollonius as much as if he had been recommended by 
the King of the Indians. Accordingly he ordered the 
royal passage-boat, and transports for the conveyance of 
his camels, and likewise supplied him with a guide for all 
that country which is bounded by the Hydraotes. He 
gave him also a letter to his own sovereign, in which he en- 
treated him to use this Greek, and divine man, with the 
same respect he had been used by Bardanes. 



CHAP. XVIII. 

BY this means our travellers were conveyed over the Indus, 
whose breadth, where it is navigable, is about forty stadia 
across. The account given of this river is as follows, 
That it has its source in mount Caucasus, that it is greater 
there, than all the rivers of Asia, and that it receives in 
its course the tribute of many navigable streams.* That 
like the Nile, it overflows the adjacent country, carrying 
along with it manure sufficient for enriching the land, and 
giving the Indians an opportunity of sowing it, after the 
manner of the Egyptians. I do not venture to oppose 
what is said of the snows which lie on the Ethiopian, and 



* The Indus is formed of ten principal streams, descending from the 
Persian and Tartarian mountains, besides five more rushing down on 
the eastern side of the Sinde, give to that country the name of Pavjab, 
or the five rivers. These rivers were to be crossed by Alexander at a 
season when the periodical rains, already commenced in the northern 
mountains, had swollen them to an uncommon magnitude, and greatly 
increased their rapidity. Maurice. 



92 

Catadupian mountains, on account of the authority of those 
who relate it ; but I do not give credit to it, especially 
when I consider that the Indus is in the same predicament 
with the Nile, though the country above the Indus is not 
covered with snow. Moreover, I know a God has set the 
Ethiopians and Indians as the two extreme horns of the 
earth, and made black the people of the rising and setting 
sun. And how could such an effect take place without 
the heat of the summer was felt in the winter ? But if 
the sun warms the earth the whole year round, how can 
it be supposed that snow falls, and that in such quantities 
as to overflow the banks of the rivers ? and even if snow 
were to fall' in those parts exposed to the sun's heat, how 
can it be supposed capable of spreading out into a sea, 
and supplying a river with water enough for the overflow- 
ing of Egypt, 

CHAP. XIX. 

WHILST our travellers were crossing the Indus,* they 
saw, according to the account they give, many hippopo- 
tami and crocodiles like those which are seen in sailing on 
the Nile. Besides, many flowers growing on its banks 
of the same species as is found in the river of Egypt. 
They learnt that the season was warm in winter, but quite 
suffocating in summer. To guard against this inconve^ 
nience, Providence has caused frequent rains to fall in this 
country. They heard from the Indians that their King 



* The Indus or Sinde, as we are informed from Sanscreet authority, 
in its early course was anciently called Nilab, or the Blue River, from 
the dark hue of its waters ; and this native appellation, added to the 
crocodiles and the Egyptian beans that grew on its banks, will in some 
degree account for the strange mistake of Alexander, that he had dis- 
covered the sources of the Nile in this region of Northern India. 

Maurice. 



1)3 

the river whenever it happens to overflow, and 
offers to it a sacrifice of bulls and black horses. White 
is a colour less esteemed among them than black, which 
is that of their own complexion. When the offering is 
made, they say the King throws a golden measure into the 
river, like that with which corn is measured. Why this 
ceremony is performed is not known; but the general idea 
is, that the measure is cast into the water either for the 
obtaining an abundance of fruit, or for preventing the 
river exceeding its bounds, and deluging the land. 



CHAP. XX. 

AS soon as they passed the river, the guide appointed by 
the Satrap conducted them straight to Taxila* the resi- 
dence of the King. According to the account of our 
travellers the dressf worn by the Indians on this side of the 
Indus, was made of a kind of flax with which the country 
abounded, and their shoes of die bark of trees. When it 
rains they wear something like a hat. The principal men 
of the country were clad in the byssus that grows on a 
tree which resembles our white poplar in its stem, and 
the willow in its leaves. Apollonius said he liked the 



• Taxila is situated on the eastern bank of the Indus, on the site 
mpposed of the present city of Attack. — Strabo describes it as the me- 
tropolis of a kingdom placed between the Indus and Hydaspes ; in 
extent not inferior to Egypt ; not less distinguished by the elegance of 
its structures than by the wisdom of its inhabitants. — It is the only 
place on the Indus where the slackened rapidity of its stream conve- 
niently admits a bridge. 

t Arrian, in his Indian history says, the Indians wear linen garments ; 
the s/ubstance whereof they are made, gTOws on trees ; and this is in- 
deed flax or something much whiter and finer than flax, the swar- 
thiness of their bodies does not make us believe it whiter than it is if 
wha\ he means must be cotton. 



94 

byssus, as being of the same sable colour with that of his 
cloak. This byssus is brought into Egypt and used for 
many sacred purposes. Taxila is not unlike the ancient 
Ninus, and is walled in the manner of other Greek towns. 
It was the royal residence of him who possessed that 
country which was formerly under the dominion of Porus. 
Before the walls of the city stood a temple whose dimen- 
sions were nearly one hundred feet, built of porphyry, 
within which was a chapel, too small in proportion to the 
size of the temple, which was large, spacious, and sur- 
rounded with pillars ; but notwithstanding, the chapel was 
worthy of admiration. Tablets of brass were hung on 
the walls with becoming inscriptions, representing the 
deeds of Alexander and Porus in orichalcum, and silver, 
and gold, and bronze. The elephants, horses, soldiers, 
helmets, shields, spears, and javelins, were all represented 
in iron. In these pictures appeared what formed the prin- 
cipal features of good painting, such as are found in those 
drawn by Zeuxes, and Polygnotus, and Euphranor ; artists 
who exhibited in their colourings light and shade, and 
relief, and all the soft and lively tints which give anima- 
tion to a whole. The various metals of which they were 
composed, coalesced and embodied like so many colors ; 
and even the mild character of Porus himself was seen 
expressed in them, but the pictures themselves were not 
exhibited till after the death of Alexander. In them the 
Macedonian was seen as conqueror, and Porus bleeding 
at his feet, to whom Alexander is restoring India, which he 
had conquered. It is said, when Porus heard of the 
death of Alexander, he wept, and regretted him as a mild 
and generous prince. After his departure from India, 
and during his life, Porus never acted in his regal capacity, 
though he had his permission, and royal license ; he ruled 
the Indians as Satrap, and conducted himself with great 
moderation ; and all he did was to the advantage of his 
sovereign lord. 



05 



CHAP. XXI. 

THE nature of the history I write does not allow me to 
pass over the account I learnt of Porus. When Alexan- 
der was on the point of invading India, some of his friends 
advised him to make alliances with such nations as lived 
beyond the Hyphasis and Ganges, presuming that Alexan- 
der would never make war against all India united. To 
this proposal, Porus replied, if the temper of my subjects 
is such that I cannot be safe without allies,* it will be 
better for me not to be a King. To one who told him 
Alexander had conquered Darius, he said, Alexander had 
conquered a King, but not a man. When the groom to 
whom was committed the care of the mules, brought him 
his favourite elephant, and said, Here is the elephant that 
will carry you, No, said Porus, 1 will carry him, if I am 
what I used to be. To another who advised him to offer 
sacrifices to the river in order to prevent its receiving the 
Macedonian transports, and giving a passage to Alexan- 
der, he answered, it is not the part of men who take up 
arms to have recourse to imprecations. After the battle, 
wherein the conduct of Porus appeared in the eyes of 
Alexander divine and more than human, one of Porus's 
friends told him, that had he submitted to the Mace- 
donian as a suppliant, and not been vanquished in battle, 
such numbers of Indians would not have fallen by the 
sword, nor would you yourself have received a wound. 
To which Porus made this reply, when I understood how- 
much Alexander loved glory, I knew that by addressing 
him as a suppliant, he would only have looked on me as 



• Notwithstanding what Philostratus says here, it appears from 
Diodorus Siculus, and the other writers, that Porus had Abisares as an 
ally, who after the battle surrendered with him. 



his slave, but that by fighting him, he would consider me 
as a King ; and therefore more deserving of bis admira- 
tion than compassion ; and in this I was not deceived, for 
bj shewing myself such as Alexander found me, I in one day 
both lost and gained every thing. This is what I learnt 
of Porus* from the Indians, to which they added, that he 
was the most beautiful man of the country, taller than any 
one since the siege of Troy, and very young when he en- 
countered Alexander^ 



CHAP XXII. 

WHILST Apollonius and his companions were waiting in 
the temple till their arrival was made known to the King, 
he said to Damis, Do you think there is such an art as 
that of painting ? I do, replied Damis, if there is truth 
in any thing. What does it perform, said Apollonius? 
It mixes together, said Damis, different colours, as blue 
with green, white with black, and red with yellow. And 
why, continued Apollonius, does it mix them, since it is 
not merely for shew, as if an amusement of girls. It is 
done, said Damis, for the sake of imitation, to represent, 
for instance, a dog, a horse, a man, a ship, or any other 
object under the sun ; and even the sun himself, who at 
one time appears in a chariot drawn by four horses (as may 
be seen in this place) and at another with a torch lighting 
up the heavens, when he paints the sky and dwellings of 
the Gods. You see then, said Apollonius, that the art of 
painting is nothing but imitation. What else? replied 
Damis, for if it cannot perform this, it will appear ridi- 
culous, an accidental union of several colours. Apollo- 
nius continued, what will you say, Damis, of the appear- 



* This account of Porus corresponds nearly with that given by all 
the writers on the subject. 



97 

ances which are visible in the heavens when the clouds 
unite and separate, such as centaurs, tragelaphs ;* and 
even wolves and horses ? are not they the effects of the 
imitative art ? I think so, said Damis. Do you suppose 
then, said Apollonius, a God will turn painter, and leave 
his winged chariot wherein he rides, and governs all things 
in Heaven and earth ; and will he, do you think, sit as if 
at play, describing figures as children do in the sand. 
Hereat Damis blushed, and blushed from a consciousness 
of his discourse having concluded in an absurdity. But 
Apollonius, who was never harsh in his reproof, without 
forsaking him in his perplexity, said, I suppose you never 
meant to say any thing which could have borne such a 
comment. As to the appearances alluded to, which are 
carried to and fro through the air, they are merely acciden- 
tal, uninfluenced by the^deity ; and we who are naturally 
prone to imitation, form out of them whatever figures 
our imagination pleases. This point then, said Damis, 
we may consider as established, it being what is most pn> 
bable and consonant to reason. The imitative art, said 
Apollonius, is two-fold, the one whereof engages the hand 
and mind in describing what it chuses, and is called the 
art of painting : and the other employs the mind alone in 
forming likenesses. Not two-fold replied Damis, for 
there is a more perfect kind of painting, which ex- 
presses by the mind and hand likenesses ; and the other is 
but a part of it which conceives and expresses likenesses 
by the mind alone, and from want of knowledge in the art 
cannot make use of the hand in drawing them. What 
would you think, Damis, said Apollonius, of a man who 
had lost the use of his hands by some wound or distem- 
per ? That he would never be a painter, from his total ig- 
norance of the use of a pencil, instrument, or any colour 



• Tragelaphs — r^aysxa^i — hinjcervus, animal hirci and cwvi figu- 
raiu mixtam habeas. 

H 



98 

whatever. Herein, said Apollonius, we are both agreed, 
and it must be allowed that the imitative faculty is derived 
from nature, and the graphic from art, which may be said 
also of the plastic. But methinks, Damis, you yourself 
do not make painting consist in mere colours, inasmuch as 
the ancient artists made use of but one colour, and as the 
art improved, of four, and then of a greater number. A 
design which consists but of simple lines, without any co- 
lour, of mere light and shade, may in truth be called a 
picture. Designs of this kind give us likeness, figure, 
character, modesty, courage, and yet they have no colour- 
ing, representing neither the blood nor the colour of the 
hair, nor the beard on the chin : and though composed of 
but one colour, they mark the difference between a tawny 
and a white man. In proof of this, were we to design an 
Indian with white lineaments, the idea would still be that of 
a black man. For the flat nose, curled locks, prominent 
cheeks, and a certain fire about the eyes, cause such fea- 
tures as are presented to the sight to appear black, and to 
represent an Indian to all who are capable of viewing and 
examining such figures with judgment; and therefore I 
should say, that they who behold pictures require a know- 
ledge of the imitative art to judge of them. For no 
person is able to praise, as it deserves, the painted repre- 
sentation of a horse, or a bull, who has not first formed 
in his mind an idea of the animal whose likeness is given. 
The Ajax, painted by Timomachus, # as mad, could not be 
commended according to its merit, if a person had not 
first conceived an idea of Ajax in that situation, fatigued 
and weary after the slaughter of the cattle, sitting alone, 
and taken up with the thoughts of putting himself to death. 



* Timomachus, a painter of Byzantium in the age of Sylla and 
Marius, whose paintings of Ajax, and his Medea murdering her children, 
were purchased for 80 talents by Julius Caesar, and deposited io the 
temple of Venus at Rome. 



99 

As to these curious works executed by the command of 
Porus, we cannot say they are solely the works of sculp- 
ture, because they resemble painting ; nor can we say they 
are the works of painting, as they are done in brass. But 
they are the works of a mail equally skilled in casting 
metals and in painting, such as Vulcan is represented in 
Homer,* when he describes the making of the armour of 
Achilles ; for there the ground appears covered with the 
dying aud the dead, and even red with blood, though the 
whole work is executed in brass. 

CHAP. XXIII. 

WHILST Apollonius was amusing himself in conversa- 
tion of this kind, certain messengers, attended by an inter- 
preter, came from the King to inform him, that it was the 
royal pleasure Apollonius should be his guest for three 
days, as the laws of the country did not allow strangers to 
remain longer than that time in the city. He was then 
conducted to the palace. Of the walls of the city we have 
already spoken; it was divided, according to the relation 
of our travellers, into narrow streets, with great regularity, 
after the Attic fashion. The houses appeared on the out- 
side and in front, as if they had but one story ! yet when 
you entered them, they were found to have as many apart- 
ments under ground as above it. 

CHAP. XXIV. 

THEY visited the temple of the sun,f in which was kept 
an elephant called Ajax, dedicated to that God. They saw 
in it statues of Alexander and Porus, the former made of 
gold and the latter of bronze. The walls of the temple 
were of porphyry, enriched with ornaments of gold, which 



* See Homer, b. xviii. 
t tf the account of this temple of the sun, as given by Philostratus, 
appears suspicious, what shall we say to the account that is given in 

H2 the 



100 

emitted a light, like the rays of the sun, whose image was 
adorned with pearls, arranged in a symbolical order, such 
as is practised by the barbarians in all sacred things. 

CHAP. XXV. 

NO pomp nor pageantry was visible in the palace ; no 
spearmen or life-guards appeared, but a few domestics, 
such as are usual' in the houses of our chief citizens. Of 
the persons in waiting who had familiar access to the King, 
there were not more than three or four. This simplicity 
was much more approved of by Apollonius than the proud 
magnificence of Babylon. What he admired most was the 
great simplicity which reigned in the interior of the palace 
through all its apartments. 

CHAP. XXVI. 

FROM all Apollonius saw, he supposed the Indian prince 
was a philosopher, whom he thus addressed by an inter- 
preter, and said, I am happy, O King! to find you study 
philosophy; and I am equally happy, returned he, that 
you think so. Apollonius went on — is the moderation 
which I see subsisting every where the effect of established 
laws, or has it been produced by yourself? The laws, 
said the King, prescribe moderation ; but I carry my idea 
of it beyond the letter, and even spirit of them. I am 
rich, and want little. Whatever I possess more than is 
necessary for my own use, is considered as appertaining to 
my friends. Happy are you, said Apollonius, in being 
possessed of such a treasure, and in preferring friends, 



the Aycen Akbery of the one at Jagernaut, on the building of which 
was expended the whole revenue of Orissa for twelve years. No one 
ever beheld the immense edifice without being struck with amazement 
— the walls were 150 cubits high, and 19 cubits thick ; on its dome, 
constructed of stone, were engraved the sun, and the stars, &c. The 
worship of the sun in the east was the great fountain of all its idolatry, 
and ever has been the most ancient superstition of all nations. 



101 

from whom are derived so many blessings, to gold and 
silver. But it is my enemies, replied the King, on whom I 
bestow my riches ; for by them I keep in subjection the 
neighbouring barbarians, who formerly used to infest my 
country, and who now, instead of making incursions them- 
selves on my territories, do not suffer others to make them. 
Here Apollonius asked, if Porus was accustomed to send 
presents to them ? The King said, Porus loved war? but 
I love peace. With these words Apollonius was so de- 
lighted, that he said to one Euphrates, whom he rebuked 
for not conducting himself like a philosopher, Let us re- 
verence Phraotes, which was the name of the Indian 
prince. To a Satrap, who was under many obligations to 
him, and on that account was desirous to bind his head 
with a golden mitre, set round with precious stones, he re- 
plied, if I was really an admirer of such things, I should 
at this time, in the presence of Apollonius, cast them all 
from me ; for to deck myself out in ornaments, to which I 
have not been accustomed, would betray an ignorance of 
my guest, and a forgetfulness of what was due to myself. 
After this, Apollonius asked concerning the kind of diet he 
used ? To which the King said, I only drink as much wine 
as what I use in my libations to the sun. The game I kill 
in hunting is all eaten by my friends ; and the exercise I 
get in the chase is found sufficient for myself. My chief 
food consists of vegetables, and the pith and fruit of the 
palm tree, together with the produce of a well-watered 
garden ; besides I have many dishes from such trees as I 
cultivate with my own hands. With these particulars 
Apollonius was much pleased, and whilst he was listening 
to them, he cast many a look on Dam is. 



* I agree with Cicero in thinking the most unfair peace is to be pre- 
ferred to the most just war, and with Apollonius in reverencing the 
character of Phraotes for loving peace. 

Bella velint, Martemquc fevum rationis egenles : 
Candida Pax homines, trux decet ira feras. 



102 

CHAP. XXVII. 

AFTER talking, and settling every thing relative to the 
road leading to the Brachmans to their mutual satisfaction, 
the King ordered the guide sent by the King of Babylon to 
be taken care of in the way it was customary to treat all 
who come from thence ; but the guide sent by the orders 
of the Satrap was dismissed, after being supplied with all 
necessaries for his journey. Then the King himself, taking 
Apollonius by the hand, and commanding the interpreter 
to withdraw, addressed him in the Greek tongue, and said, 
Will you make me your guest ? Apollonius, surprised at 
what he heard, asked why he did not at first speak to him 
in that language ? Because, said the King, I was rather 
apprehensive I might appear too presuming, either from 
not knowing myself, or not recollecting, that it had pleased 
fortune to make me a barbarian. But at present, over- 
come by the love I have for you, and by the pleasure you 
seem to take in my company, I can no longer conceal my- 
self ; and how well I am acquainted with the Greek tongue 
I hope to give you many proofs. Why, then, said Apollo- 
nius, did not you rather invite me to be your guest, than 
command me to make you mine ? Because, said the King, 
I look on you as my superior in virtue, for of all gifts a 
prince can possess, I deem wisdom the brightest.* When 
he uttered these words, he conducted Apollonius and his 
companions to the bath wherein he was used to bathe him- 
self. The place was a garden, about a stadium in length, 
in the midst whereof was dug a tank or cistern, which re- 
ceived into it streams which were both cool and refreshing. 
On both sides of this tank were places set apart for run*- 
ning, and where the King sometimes exercised himself with 
the disc and javelin, after the Greek fashion. He was a 
man of about seven and twenty years of age, of a hale ro- 

* Solus Sapiens Rex, is a paradox well known among the stoics. 



103 

bust constitution, and much accustomed to bodily exercise. 
When he had taken what diversion he thought necessary in 
this way, he plunged into the bath, and there amused him- 
self with swimming. After bathing, they went to the 
royal feast, crowned with garlands, which was the custom 
of die Indians whenever they were admitted to feast in the 
King's palace. 

CHAP. XXVIII. 

HERE it is not improper, I think, to notice the fashion 
which they use at their meals, as it is particularly described 
by Damis. The King reclines on a bed of leaves, and near 
him not more than five of his own family. The rest of 
the company eat sitting. A table is raised in the midst 
like an altar, about the height of a man's knee, of a circu- 
lar form, large enough to hold thirty men round it as a 
chorus. It is dressed out with laurels, and other leaves* 
resembling myrtle, which yield an ointment most grateful 
to the Indians. On this table are served up fish and fowl, 
as well as whole lions, f goats, and swine, with haunches of 
tygers,J which are the only joints of that animal eaten by 
the natives, from an idea, that when it is first born, it raises 
its fore feet to the rising sun. Each guest that is invited 
rises from his seat, advances to the table, takes part of 
what is set on it, and returns again to his place, eating 
some bread with it. When all are satisfied, gold and silver 
goblets are handed about, one of which is sufficient for 
ten guests. Out of these they drink with their bodies bent 
forward, after the way in which animals drink at a river. 

Sir William Jones has an ingenious essay on the Spikenard of the 
ancients, wherein he proves it to be the Valeriana Jatamansi of India, 
whose leaves it is probable are alluded to by Philostratus in the text as 
producing an agreeable odor. 

t The flesh of the lion has a strong and disagreeable flavour; yet it 
» frequently eat by the Indians and negroes. Buffon. 

t The Indians eat the flesh of tygers, and find it neither unwhole- 
some nor disagreeable. Buffon. 



104 

Whilst thus employed, they have some feats of activity 
performed before them, which are attended with much 
risk, and require great skill and address. For instance, 
a boy, like one of our stage dancers, leaped from a height 
just as a javelin was thrown upwards from below, with 
such accuracy of measurement, as to the extreme ascent, 
that he seemed, by making a sobresault in the air, to sus- 
pend himself, and thereby alone prevent his falling on the 
weapon's point.* For the person who threw the javelin, 
before he let it out of his hand, carried it about the com- 
pany, shewing its point, and making every one feel the 
sharpness of it. — Moreover, the shooting with a sling, and 
hitting a very hair ; and a father's portraying even his own 
son standing fixed against a board, with javelins, as it were 
with line and compass, are quite common modes of amuse- 
ment, and exercised by them whilst in their cups. 

CHAP. XXIX. 

DAMIS and his companions were amazed at what they 
saw, and thought it well worth seeing : they admired great- 
ly the skill and dexterity of the performance. But Apol- 
lonius, who sat at the King's table, and eat of the same 
meat with him, -paid little attention to it. He asked the 
King how he acquired the Greek language and philosophy, 
and said, he did not suppose they were indebted for it to 
masters, nor was it likely there were any persons in India 
of that description. At this the King smiling, said, our 
ancestors used to question all travellers who arrived by 
sea, whether they were pirates ?f So common was then 






* From the want of precision in the original text, or else evident 
corruption of it, the meaning of the above passage is rather gnessed 
at, than comprehended. 

t Relate, if business, or the thirst of gain 
Engage your journey o'er the pathless main; 
Where savage pirates seek, thro' seas unknown, 
The lives of others, vent'rous of their own. Od. b. 3. 
Such was the question proposed to Telemachus by Nestor. 

Piracy 



105 

the crime considered, notwithstanding its enormity. But 
you seem to question all who come to you, whether they 
are philosophers, as if you supposed the most divine of 
human possessions was to be found amongst all men, with- 
out any distinction. I know with you Greeks the profes- 
sion of philosophy is considered as a species of piracy; 
and I am informed that there is no man like yourself, at 
the same time that there are many of you who, like com- 
mon robbers, put on the habit of philosophy, and strut 
about in loose flowing garments which belong to other 
men. And as pirates, who know that the sword of justice 
is suspended over them, spend their time in all manner of 
excess, so do these self-appointed philosophers indulge in 
love and wine, and dress themselves in the most effeminate 
way. The cause of all this is your laws, which say, that if 
any person adulterates the current coin, he is punished with 
death ; or if he is guilty of substituting a spurious child, or 
any other like offence, he receives a suitable punishment ; 
but if the same man imposes on the world a false philoso- 
phy, or adulterates it, no law exists for restraining him, 
ncr is there any magistrate appointed for taking cognizance 
of it. 

CHAP. XXX. 

WITH us there are but few who make philosophy their 
study ; and they who do, are tried and examined in the fol- 



Piracy, formerly not a reproach.— Some people of the continent, says 
Thucydides, are even to this day a proof of this, who still attribute 
honour to such exploits, if genteelly performed. So also are the ancient 
poets, in whom those that sail along the coasts are every where equally 
accosted with this question, Whether they are pirates? as if neither they 
to whom the question was put would disown their employment, nor 
they who are desirous to be informed would reproach them with it. 

Eustathius says, piracy was formerly not only accounted lawful, but 
honourable.— See Wood's Hormr. 



106 

lowing manner : A young man, when he has reached his 
eighteenth year (which, I suppose with you, is the age of 
puberty) must go beyond the Hyphasis, and see those men 
to whom you are going. When he comes into their pre- 
sence, he must make a public declaration of studying phi- 
losophy ; and they have it in their power, if they think pro- 
per, to refuse admitting him to their society, if he does 
not come pure. What is meant by his coming pure is, 
tl that there be no blemish on either his father's or mother's 
side, nor on that of any of his forefathers, even to the 
third generation ; that none of his ancestors be found to 
have been unjust, or incontinent, or usurers." And when 
no stigma or mark of reproach is discovered, the youth's 
character is then examined into, and enquiry made whether 
he has a good memory;* whether his modesty is natural 
or assumed; whether he is fond of wine and good living; 
besides, whether he is given to vain boasting, to idle mer- 
riment, to passion, or evil speaking ; and lastly, whether he 
be obedient to his father, and mother, and teachers; and 
above all, whether he makes a proper use of his beauty ? 
What information concerns his parents and ancestors is col- 
lected from living testimony, and registered tablets, which 
are hung up for public inspection. Whenever an Indian 
dies, the magistrate appointed by the laws goes to the 
house of the deceased, and writes down an account of his 
life and actions. If the magistrate so appointed is disco- 
vered to have acted with duplicity, or suffered himself to 
have been imposed on, he is punished, and for ever after 
prohibited from holding any office in future, as one who 



* Those Egyptians, says Herodotus, who live in the cultivated parts 
of the country are, of all whom I have seen, the most ingenious, being 
attentive to the improvement of memory beyond the rest of mankind. 
This attention to memory is agreeable to the doctrine of the Pythago- 
reans, and shews the connexion between the opinions of the Egyptians 
and Indians. 



107 

has falsified the life of a man. Such information as re- 
lates to the candidates themselves individually, is acquired 
by a minute investigation of their looks. We know that 
much of the human disposition is learnt from the eyes, and 
much from examining the eye-brows and cheeks ; all which 
things being well considered,* wise men, and such as are 
deep read in nature, see the temper and disposition of men 
just as they see objects in a mirror. In this country phi- 
losophy is esteemed of such high price, and so honoured 
by the Indians, that it is very necessary to have all exa- 
mined who approach her. In what manner the teachers 
are to act, and the pupils be examined, I think has now 
been sufficiently detailed. 



CHAP. XXXI. 

I WILL now tell you what relates to myself. My grand- 
father was a King, and of my own name, Phraotes. My 
father was a private man, and being left young and an or- 
phan, the care of his kingdom fell into the hands of two 
of his near relations, who were appointed guardians by the 
laws of the Indians. They ruled the kingdom (I swear it 
by the sun) in a most despotic manner, which soon made 
them detested by their subjects, and their administration 
odious. A conspiracy was entered into by some of the 
chief men of the kingdom, who attacked them at a public 
festival, and murdered them, whilst in the act of sacri- 
ficing to the Indus. After this they seized on the govern- 
ment, and made themselves masters of the country. My 
fodier's friends, who were anxious for his safety (he was 
not then more than sixteen years of age) sent him to the 
other side of the Hyphasis, and committed him to the 



* With these men Lavater would have been in great vogue. 



108 

care of the King there, whose dominions were greater than 
mine, and abounded more in riches. This prince wished 
to adopt him as his son ; but my father declined the ho- 
nour, saying, he would not struggle with that fortune which 
had deprived him of a kingdom. He therefore requested 
the King's permission to study philosophy with his wise 
men, from an idea that such a pursuit would enable him 
the better to bear his domestic misfortunes. When this 
same prince expressed his intention to restore him to his 
paternal throne, my father said, if you discover in me a 
real attachment to philosophy, restore me to what I have 
lost ; if not, permit me to remain in my present privacy. 
When the King heard this, he waited on the sages in per- 
son, and said how much obliged he would be to them, if 
they would attend particularly to the young man whom he 
presented to them, and recommended to their care as a 
youth of a most ingenuous disposition. As they disco- 
vered something marked in his countenance, they took 
great pleasure in making him acquainted with all their 
knowledge, and were particularly desirous to communicate 
what they knew to one who seemed so anxious to learn. 
When seven years were expired the King fell sick, and as 
soon as he perceived his latter end draw nigh, he sends for 
my father, appoints him joint-heir with his own son in the 
kingdom, and promises him his daughter in marriage. 
However, as soon as my father found that the new King 
loved to associate with flatterers, and was addicted to wine 
and other vanities, and was besides of a suspicious, jealous 
temper towards himself, he addressed him in these words : 
" Keep your estates undivided, and possess your power 
without a partner;" for it would be ridiculous to think 
that he who was not able to keep a kingdom, which was 
his own by right, should rashly meddle with that which 
was another's. Give me, I pray you, your sister, and I 
will ask no more of your possessions. After obtaining his 
consent for the marriage, he retired into the neighbour- 



101) 

hood of the wise men, and dwelt in one of the seven vil- 
lages which the King settled on his daughter for her 
dowry.* I am the fruit of this marriage. I learnt from 
my father the Greek language, and was soon committed to 
the care of the wise men ; sooner, perhaps, than what was 
fitting for my time of life (being then only in my twelfth 
year) and was brought up as their son. Such young men 
as come previously instructed in the literature of Greece, 
are esteemed in proportion as they are supposed to be 
more capable of receiving instruction, on account of the 
congeniality of their dispositions. 



C H A P. XXXII. 

AFTER the death of my parents, who died almost at the 
same time, I was carried by the wise men to the villages 
which were settled on my mother, and desired by them to 
attend to my own affairs, though not more than nineteen 
years of age. But alas ! these villages had all been taken 
from me by my kind uncle, along with some adjoining 
farms which had been purchased by my father. My good 
uncle said they were all his property, and that I should 
consider it as a particular favour that I was suffered to live 
on a small pittance derived from my mother's freed men. 
I supported myself as well as I could, being attended but 
by four domestics. One day, whilst I was reading the 
play of the Heraclidae,f a certain person came to me with 



* In Persia it was the custom to bestow on their Queens particular 
cities, to provide them with veils and other parts of their dress. 

t Argument of the Heraclidae from Euripides.— Hercules being re- 
ceived among the Gods, and his children still persecuted by Eurystheus, 
tied for protection to Ceyx, King of Trachiniae; but the latter being 
threatened with invasion by Eurystheus, was obliged to dismiss the 
suppliants, who took refuge in the more southern province*. After 

many 



no 

a letter from one of my father's trusty friends, in which I 
was commanded to pass the Hydraotes without delay, and 
confer with him on the subject of the recovering my king- 
dom, and that there was good reason to hope that I might 
regain it, provided my own exertions were not wanting. 
From an idea that one of the Gods had put that play into 
my hands, I embraced the omen. As soon as I passed 
the river, information was brought me that one of the 
usurpers was dead, and the other besieged in his palace. 
I pushed on with vigour, making proclamation through all 
the towns I passed, that I was such a person's son, and 
was going to take possession of my kingdom. The people 
every where received me with open arms, and saluted me 
King, from my likeness to my grandfather. They came 
armed with short swords* and bows/j* and their numbers 
daily increased. On my approaching the gates, the joy of 
the people was so great, that they snatched up the torches 
from the altar of the sun, and conducted me to the palace, 
singing with loud voice the praises of my father and grand- 
father. The usurper, who lay concealed like a drone, and 
whom the people had shut up within the walls, I could 
not save from perishing, though I used all my eloquence 
for the purpose. 



many calamities they at last sought an asylum at Athens, and sitting as 
suppliants at the altar of mercy, besought the assistance of that gene- 
rous race. The Athenians, deaf to the menaces of Eurystheus, levied 
an army to withstand the invader : his four sons fell in the battle, and 
Eurystheus himself was slain in the pursuit by Hyllus, the son of Her- 
cules and Dejanira, who carried his head to Alcraena. — Dryden wrote 
a play called the Maiden Queen, the plot of which he seems to have 
borrowed from the story of this Indian King's recovery of his throne. 

* Their foot soldiers carry swords of a vast breadth, though scarce 
exceeding three cubits in length. — Arrian's Indian History. 

t They usually carry a bow of the same length with the bearer, 
which they lay on the ground, and place their left foot thereon to bend 
it, by which means they draw the string far back.—Sww. 






Ill 



CHAP. XXXIII. 

WHEN Apollonius heard this, he said, you have, O King ! 
exactly fulfilled the return of the Heraclida?, and the Gods 
are to be praised for the assistance afforded to a virtuous 
man returning to his country. But as we are on the sub- 
ject of the wise men of India, tell me whether they are the 
men whom Alexander formerly invited to a conference, 
and with whom he discoursed philosophically on the nature 
of the heavens. No, said the King, the people of whom 
you speak were the Oxydracae,* a nation free and indepen- 
dent, and always prepared for war, who, it is said, have 
invaded the province of philosophy, without ever having 
made any useful discovery in it, or done any thing worthy 
of credit. But the men who are really entitled to the cha- 
racter of being wise, dwell in the country situate between 
the Hyphasis and Ganges, which was never penetrated by 
Alexander, not from any fears of the consequence, but 
from the omens being, as I suppose, unpropitious. For 
had he passed the Hyphasis, and subdued the country, he 
never could have made himself master of the castle, the 
seat of these sages, even had he brought with him ten 
thousand Achilleses and thirty thousand Ajaxes. It is not 
the custom of these men to make war on an enemy ; but 
should an enemy make war on them, they drive him off by 
the means of tempests and thunders, whilst they remain 
safe under the immediate protection of the Gods. We are 
informed, that the Egyptian Hercules and Bacchus, who 
overrun India with their armies, made a joint attack on 
them, and by the aid of various military engines, attempted 



* The Oxydracae seem to have been situated at the confluence of the 
Hydraotes aud the Acesines, that is, the Rauvee and Jenaub. Col. 
Rerniel supposes that the present city of Outch or Arena, might have 
been the capital of that martial race. 



113 

to surprise the place. During this time the sages seemed 
to do nothing in their own defence, remaining, as it was 
thought, unconcerned ; but the moment the assailants ad- 
vanced to storm their castle, they were repulsed by fiery 
whirlwinds* and thunders, which being hurled from above, 
fell dreadful on their armies. Then it was that Hercules 
threw away his golden shield, which these wise men found 
and laid up among their sacred treasures, from a respect to 
his character, and its singular sculpture. In it Hercules 
was represented as settling the boundaries of the earth at 
Gades, and forming two pillars of the corresponding moun- 
tains to shut out the ocean. From ail which it appeared, 
that it was not the Theban, but the Egyptian Hercules 
who went to Gades, and fixed the limits of the earth. 



CHAP. XXXIV. 

WHILST they were talking in this manner, the sound of 
music was heard, accompanied with the flute. Apollonius 
asked the meaning of such mirth. The Indians, replied 
the King, are celebrating the praises of their sovereign, in 
order that he may have favourable dreams, and rise in 
health, with the interest of his subjects near his heart. In 
what light said Apollonius, do you consider this ceremony? 
Not in a ludicrous one, said the King ; for it is admitted 
on account of the law, and of no other kind of admoni- 
tion do I stand in need. Whenever a King acts with pru- 
dence and moderation, he acts in a manner more grateful 
to himself than to his people. With these words they both 
went to rest. 



* This is one proof among many others that the Indians from time 
immemorial had the use of gunpowder. The missile weapons darted 
by these sages, in noise and effect resembling lightning and thunder, 
must be Xhejire rockets described in the sketches of the Hindoos. 

Maurice. 



113 



CHAP. XXXV. 



AS soon as day appeared, the King in person visited the 
chamber where Apollonius and his friends slept, and gently 
approaching the bed of the former, asked what was the 
subject of his meditations ? for I suppose, you who drink 
water and despise wine, do not sleep. What, said Apollo- 
nius, is it your opinion that water-drinkers do not sleep ! 
I think, said the King, they do sleep, but that what they 
take affects the eyes more than the mind; for if the mind 
be not composed and tranquil, the eyes cannot take rest, 
as is visible in the case of mad men, who cannot close 
their eyes on account of the perturbid state of their minds j 
for as their thoughts run quick from one object to another, 
their eyes at last acquire a wild and disordered look, like 
that of sleepless dragons. In order then to ascertain, said 
Apollonius, the nature of sleep, and what it indicates to 
mortals, let us inquire in what respect the sleep of him 
who drinks water is inferior to that of him who drinks 
wine. Do not, said the King, change the state of the ques- 
tion after the manner of the sophists. 1 will grant you 
that intoxication does not promote sleep; for the mind of 
a man in that condition, like that of a Bacchanalian, will 
be disordered and filled with a thousand confused ideas. 
For all who try to sleep after a debauch, think themselves 
at one time whirled to the top of the house, and at another 
to the bottom, seeming all the while to suffer a giddiness 
something like what Ixiou endures on the wheel. There- 
fore my question does not concern the drunken man, but 
him who drinks wine with temperance. We are to in- 
quire, then, whether such a man sleeps better thau he who 
entirely abstains from it. 



114 



CHAP. XXXVI. 

THEN Apollonius turning to Damis, said, you see what 
a strenuous adversary we have to deal with, one well exer- 
cised in the dialectic art. I do, replied Damis, and this 
is what perhaps may be proverbially called "falling into 
the hands of Hercules ;"* and, in truth, the argument he 
has used comes home to us, and therefore I think it time 
you should shake off sleep and answer it. Hereupon 
Apollonius raised his head, and proceeded as follows : 
Without losing sight, O King ! of what you have said, I 
hope to shew that the sleep of us who drink water is much 
sweeterf than that of those who drink wine. I think you 



* Entre les mains de l'homme aux fesses noirs, dit le texte (ey to 
MtxapTrvyii). On sait 1'histoire des'deux freres que leur mere avoit 
avertis de se garder de l'homme aux fesses noirs. Hercule les prit, les 
attacha par les pieds, & les mit derriere son dos suspendus a sa massue. 
Alors ils comprirent le sens de l'avis de leur mere. 

As this story reads better in French than it would do in English, I 
have transcribed it from the last French translation of our author. 
t Nothing like simple element dilutes 
The food, or gives the chyle so soon to flow : 
But where the stomach, indolent and cold, 
Toys with its duty, animate with wine 
Th' insipid stream, tho' golden Ceres yields 
A more voluptuous, a more sprightly draught, 
Perhaps more active. Wine unmix'd, and all 
The gluy floods that from the vex'd abyss 
Of fermentation spring; with spirit fraught, 
And furious with intoxicating fire, 
Retard concoction, and preserve uuthaw'd 
Th' embodied mass. You see what countless years, 
Embalmed in fiery quintessence of wine, 
The puny wonders of the reptile world, 
The tender rudiments of life, the slim 
Unrav'lings of minute anatomy ; 
Maintain their texture, and unchang'd remain. 

Armstrong on Health, b. it. 



115 

have already fully confessed that the minds of drunkeu men 
are disturbed and affected almost to madness, which is ap- 
parent from such men thinking they see two moons and 
two suns, whilst others, who have not drank like them, and 
who are in comparison of them sober, never entertain such 
notions, and yet are full of joy and pleasure, without being 
able to shew one existing cause for being so. Men in this 
state of mitigated intoxication plead causes, though never 
known before to have spoken at the bar, and say they are 
rich, without having a drachma in their possession. These, 
O King ! are the affections of insane people ; but joy it- 
self produces similar effects. I have seen many whom 
the bare prospect of good fortune would not suffer to rest 
on account of the frequent startings to which they were 
subject in their v sleep; and this comes in confirmation of 
the proverb which says, that the "good things of this life 
are not without their concomitant anxieties" There are 
also certain medical preparations which men have disco- 
vered for producing sleep, of which, if they drink, or with 
which if they anoint themselves, they sleep stretched out as 
if they were dead. But it is well known, that when they 
awake after such a state of oblivion, they suppose them- 
selves to be in any other place than where they really are. 
That these potions which are drank, or rather infused on 
both soul and body, do not produce true and natural sleep, 
but either what is profound and like that of people half 
dead, or else what is light and interrupted by every floating 
vision, no matter how agreeable, you will, I think, allow, 
unless you love contention rather than fair argumentation. 
However, they who drink water, as I do, see things as 
they really are, and never imagine what is not ; they are 
not giddy, nor sleepy, nor stupid, and are not more cheer- 
ful than what is decent and becoming, but are always com- 
posed and rational, and that at all times equally so, as well 
in the evening as in the morning, at the hour of full forum . 
Such persons are never overcome with sleep, though they 

i 2 



116 N 

* sit up most part of the night at their studies : for sleep, 
like an imperious master, only falls heavy on the neck that 
is already bowed down with wine, but they who drink 
water are always free and erect; and when they go to 
bed, sleep sound, neither elated by prosperity nor depress- 
ed by adversity. The man who is sober, bears both situ- 
ations with equal moderation, unaffected by either the one 
or the other. Hence, it comes to pass that his sleep is 
sound, and most pleasant, without any interruption . . . 



CHAP. XXXVII. 

MOREOVER, divination, by dreams, which amongst 
mortals passes for a discovery of divine origin, is more easily 
comprehended by a mind not overcome by wine, because 
in such a state it receives the impression unaltered, and is 
more capable of weighing it with attention. Hence the 
interpreters of dreams called oneiropolists by the poets, 
give no opinion of any vision till the exact time of its ap- 
pearance is ascertained to them. If the vision be in the 
morning, at the time the mind is supposed to be disengaged 
from the effects of wine, and is capable of forming a 
right judgment of futurity, the oneiropolists will then in- 
terpret. But if it be during the first sleep, or at mid- 
night, when the soul is oppressed with wine, they will not 
interpret, and herein they are wise. I will now shew in a 
few words that such are the sentiments of the Gods, and 
that the faculty of foretelling future events is communicated 
only to the temperate and sober. Amongst the Greeks, 
O King! we had formerly a prophet of the name of 
Amphiaraus. I know it, said the King, you speak of 
the son of Oicleus who was swallowed up alive by the 
opening of the earth as he was returning from Thebes. 
Hie very same, replied Apollonius, he still continues to 



117 

prophesy in Attica,* and gives dreams to all who consult 
liim : but the priest takes care that all who do, should ab- 
stain from eating for one day, and from drinking wine for 
three, that they may the better be able to receive the 
responses with perspicuity. Had wine been held a pre- 
scription proper for producing sleep, the wise Amphiaraus 
would have adopted a different regimen with those who 
came to consult his oracle, and would, I think, have ra- 
ther advised them to approach his shrine like casks filled 
with wine. I might enumerate many other oracles both 
among Greeks and barbarians, wherein the priest gives his 
answers from a tripod after drinking water, and not wine : 
and therefore, O King ! you may consider me and all wa- 
ter-drinkers, as fit vehicles for the reception of the God, 
inasmuch as we are under the immediate influence of the 
water-nymphs, and are perfect Bacchantes in sobriety. 
Will you then, Apollonius, said the King, make me a 
member of your society ? I should do it with pleasure 
said he, if I was not apprehensive it might be the means, 
of making you less respected by your subjects. For a 
moderate and liberal philosophy in a prince is attended hj,, 
the very best consequences, as is apparent from your exam- 
ple : but if it is narrow, and too rigid in its exactions, it 
may seem somewhat irksome, and ill- adapted to a royal 
situation, and may be construed by the envious into a 
false pride and ostentation. Whilst discoursing in this man- 
ner, day advanced, and they departed from the cham- 
ber. 

CHAP XXXVIII. 

WHEN Apollonius found that the King was going to 
give audience to embassadors, and answers to some peti- 



• At Oropus— a town of Beotia on the borders of Attica, where 
Amphiaraus had a temple. 



118 

tions, he said to him, perform, O King! such duties as 
are becoming your station, and leave me to offer up my 
accustomed prayers to the sun. May he hear them, said 
the King, and be propitious to you, for I think he will 
take pleasure in obliging all who love wisdom. Mean- 
while I will wait your return, having some causes to decide 
in which your presence will be of great use. 

CHAP. XXXIX. 

SOON after, when day was somewhat advanced, Apollo- 
nius returned and said, what causes have you tried, O 
King ? I have not tried any, said he, as the Auspices* 
were not favourable. What, said Apollonius, have you 
recourse to the auspices, when you administer justice as 
you do, when you undertake a journey or a military expe- 
dition? Certainly, said the King, for in such cases the 
danger is, lest he who judges, should judge not according to 
justice. To this Apollonius bowed assent, and asked 
what was the particular cause he had to try, for it seemed 
to him as if he was at a loss how to make a decision. I 
own I am, said the King, and therefore wish to make you 
my assistant counsel. I will tell you the case. One man 
sold another a piece of ground in which was concealed a 
treasure, of which all parties were ignorant. Some time 
after the ground opening discovered a pot of gold, which 
he who sold the field, said, was his property : as he affirmed 
he never would have sold it had he been apprised that it 
contained what was so necessary in life. The buyer on 
the other hand said, he bought all the field contained. In 
my opinion, said the King, the plea of both is reasonable; 



* A similar mode of speaking occurs in Tacitus in the second book 
of his Annals. — " Pleased with this prognostic, which the auspices con- 
firmed, Germanicus called an assembly of the soldiers," &c. 

Murphy. 



U9 

and yet, were I to advise them to divide the money, I should 
not be considered as a very subtile lawyer, inasmuch as 
such a decision might be made by any old woman. Here- 
upon Apollonius interposing, said, I perceive plainly that 
these two men are no philosophers, by the manner they 
wrangle about the gold. But you, O King ! will judge 
the matter most equitably by taking into consideration, 
first, that the Gods have especial care of those men who 
excel in philosophy ; and next, that their care extends to 
all who are free from vice, and least disposed to evil. To 
philosophers they give the power of discerning between 
divine and human things ; and to other men of good cha- 
racters, such a competency of the necessaries of life as 
may keep them from doing any thing unjust to acquire 
them. I think then, O King ! that the behaviour of both 
should be weighed as in a balance, and the life and action 
of each well examined; for my opinion is, the Gods 
would never have taken the land from the one, had he not 
been a bad man, nor given it to the other had he not been 
a good one. The next day both came to plead their cause, 
and it appeared that the seller was a man who despised the 
sacrifices due to the terrestrial Gods, and the other, one 
who did not, but was a devout worshipper of them. The 
opinion given by Apollonius determined the case, and the 
good man departed under conviction that he was favoured 
by Heaven.* 

CHAP. XL. 

AFTER this cause was determined, Apollonius approach- 
ed the King, and said, I have been now three days your 



* A friend of mine is of opinion that the story in this chapter gave 
something like the rude outline of Pamela Hermit. It is well known, 
the story is found in Arabian authors, but it is no less notorious that 
they borrowed much from the Greeks. 



120 ' 

guest, and on the morrow I mean to take my departure in 
compliance with your law. To this the King replied, 
The law does not yet speak to you such a language ; you 
have my free permission to stay to-morrow, and my reason 
for it is, that your coming was not till after mid-day. I 
am delighted, said Apollonius, with the way in which I 
have been entertained, and particularly with the ingenious 
manner in which you have eluded the law for my sake. 
If on any account, said the King, a law can be dispensed 
with, it should be so on your's. But tell me, Apollonius, 
did the camels on which you rode here, carry you from 
Babylon ? They did, said Apollonius, and we were sup- 
plied with them by Bardanes. And do you think, said 
the King, they will be able to convey you to your journey's 
end, after having come so many stadia from Babylon ? 
When Apollonius heard this he was silent. Here Damis 
interposing, said, I fear, O King ! that Apollonius is not 
acquainted with the nature of the journey, nor with the na- 
tions amongst whom he is to travel. He has hopes of 
always meeting with such men as you and Bardanes, and 
this is what makes him consider the going to the Indians 
as a matter of mere amusement; and is the true reason of 
his not owning to you the sad condition of his camels, 
which is such, that instead of their carrying us, we shall, 
I fear, be obliged to carry them ; and therefore I just 
hint the necessity of our getting others. Besides, I must 
say, that if they should fail us in the desarts of India, we 
should be obliged to remain there to defend them from the 
vultures and wolves ; and as we should have none to protect 
ourselves, must consequently perish. This, I think, can 
be easily remedied, said the King, by giving you others, 
and my opinion is, you ought not to have less than four. I 
will give orders to the satrap, who is set over the country 
along the Indus, to send back those you have to Babylon. 
I have a troop of camels, said the King, that are all milk- 
white. Will you not give us a guide, O King ! said Da- 



1<21 

I will, said the King, and a camel for him to ride 
on ; and all tilings necessary for the journey : and added 
to all, I will write a letter to Iarchas, the eldest of the 
men, and request him to receive Apollonius as a man 
not inferior to himself ; and you as philosophers and his 
disciples. After this, he ordered them gold and precious 
stones, and linen garments, &c. of which Apollonius re- 
fused the gold, saying, they had enough of it, as his guide, 
unknown to him, had been supplied by Bardanes. He 
said, however, he would accept of the linen garments as 
they had been worn by the oldest inhabitants of Attica.* 
Then taking up one of the precious stones in his hand, he 
said, " O rare stone : how fortunate have I been in rinding 
you, not without the favour of the Gods, seeing as I sup- 
pose some secret virtue in it. But Damis and his com- 
panions, though they declined taking the gold, yet took 
plentifully of the precious stones, saying, they would dedi- 
cate them to the Gods whenever they returned to their 
own country. 



CHAP. XLI. 

ALL that day and the following one they staid with the 
King, and just as they were going away, he gave them a 
letter to Iarchas to this effect : 

" King Phraotes to Iarchas his master, and to the 
wise men with him, health." 

" Apollonius, a man famed for wisdom, thinks you have 



* And it is not a long time since those amongst the rich Athenians 
who were advanced in years and studied their ease, left off teeming 
their linen garments, and fastening the hair of their head behind with 
grasshoppers of gold, &c. Tuucydides. Smith. 



122 

more knowledge than himself, and goes to be instructed in 
it. Send him away learned in all you know, and believe 
that nothing you teach him will be lost. His power of 
speaking is above that of mortals, and his memory good. 
Let him see the throne on which I sat, when your father 
Iarchas gave me my kingdom. Moreover, his followers 
are deserving of praise on account of their respect for the 
man. — 

" Farewel and be happy." 

CHAP. XLII. 

THEN departing from Taxila, and going two days jour- 
ney, they came to a plain,* where the battle was fought 
between Alexander and Porus. Here our travellers tell 
us they saw two gates, which were built, not for the pur- 
poses of inclosure, but for the exhibition of trophies, 
there being erected on them a representation of Alexander 
in a chariot drawn by four horses, such as he appeared 
at Tssus, after the defeat of the satraps of Darius. They 
further add, that there were two other gates not far distant 
from each other, on which stood a statue of Porus, and 
on the other, one of Alexander, erected, as is supposed, in 
consequence of their reconciliation after the battle, the one 
is in the attitude of triumphant salutation, and the other 
in that of humble submission. 

CHAP. XLIII. 

AFTERWARDS having passed the Hydraotes, and 
traversed many nations, they came to the Hyphasis.f 



* On the spot where Alexander defeated Porus, he built a city in 
memory of the victory, called Nicaea — which was situated, according 
to Ptolemy, on the eastern shore of the Hydaspes. 

t Dr. Robertson, in his historical disquisition concerning ancient 

India, 



123 

About thirty stadia before they came to this river, they 
found some altars, on which were the following inscrip- 
tions : — 

To Father Ammon — and to Brother Hercules — To the 
provident Minerva, and Olympian Jupiter. 

To the Samothracian Cabiri* — To Indian Sol and bro- 
ther Apollo. They say also, there was a brazen pillar 
erected, on which was this inscription written : " Here 
Alexander stopped." The altars were supposed to have 



India, says, Alexander never approached nearer than the southern 
bank of the Hyphasis, where he erected twelve stupendous altars, 
which he intended as a monument of his exploits, and which (if we may 
believe the biographer of Apollonius) were still remaining with legible 
inscriptions, when that fantastic sophist, adds the Doctor, visited In- 
dia, 373 yeai'3 after Alexander's expedition. Diodorus Siculus is the 
author who mentions Alexander's erecting twelve altars to the twelve 
Gods, every one 50 cubits high. 

* One day, says Dr. Warton, Mr. Wise read to us (meaning Dr. John* 
son and himself) a dissertation he was preparing for the press, entitled 
a History and Chronology of the fabulous ages. Some old deities of 
Thrace, related to the Titans, called the Cabiri, made a very important 
part of the theory of the piece, — and in conversation afterwards, Mr. 
Wise talked much of the Cabiri. — In returning home, adds Dr. War- 
ton, I walked too fast for Johnson, when he cried out, why, you walk 
as if you were pursued by all the Cabiri in a body. — BoswelVs life of 
Johnson. — But this conversation throws little light on the Cabiri, and 
Wise's book I have never seen. No part of heathen mythology is in- 
volved in a greater degree of obscurity than the mysteries of the Ca- 
bin. — Their rites were carefully concealed from the vulgar. They 
were seven in number, and supposed to be the family of Noah, accord- 
ing to Faber; but according to Vallancey, they were three deities— 
the first, Deimal the God of winds and storms — hence, perhaps the 
Phadimi; the second, Dioscar the God of voyages — hence, perhaps the 
Discorida— and the third, Taulon, or the Sun.— Their worship, Vallan- 
cey supposes, originated at Dioscurias a town on the Pontus— Di, he 
•ays, signifies a God, and Oscar a traveller. 

Faber says the Cabiri were styled Dioscuri, Corybantes, and Samo- 
thraces. 



124 



been built by Alexander, as monuments intended to com- 
memorate and honour the boundaries of his empire. But 
the pillar is supposed to have been erected by the Indians, 
on the other side of the Hyphasis, for the purpose of ex- 
pressing their joy that Alexander was not able to march 
farther. 



BOOK III.— Contents. 

An account of the river Hyphasis — Passes it — Arrival 
of Apollonius at the hill of the Sages— Various sub- 
jects of Conversation discussed whilst there — Stays 
with them four months — Instructed in all their learn- 
ing — Sails down the Hyphasis, fyc. — Arrives at the 
ocean — Voyage from Patala in the mouth of the 
Indus to the Persian Gulf— Pearl fishery described 
— Sails to Babylon — Goes to Antioch — to Seleucia, 
and from thence sails to Cyprus. 

CHAP. I. 

IT is now time to notice the Hyphasis* as it runs through 
an extensive tract of country, and the things related of it 
are wonderful. This river rises in a plain, and becomes 
navigable, not far from its source, but soon ceases being 
so, on account of sharp and rugged rocks appearing and 
disappearing in it alternately, which break and agitate the 
current so as to render sailing on it impracticable.*]- This 
river is as large as the Danube, allowed to be one of the 
most considerable streams of Europe. The same species 
of trees grow on the banks of each, from which distils a 
liquor used by the Indians in making a nuptial oil, with 
which, if a new married couple are not anointed all over 
by the persons appointed for the purpose, the union is 
thought incomplete, and made invita venere. There is a 
grove near the Hyphasis dedicated to Venus, and a fish 



* Hyphasis, oue of the rivers intersecting the province now known 
by the name of the Paitjab, or the five rivers. 

t Alexander then moved forward to the river Hyphasis, which is 
seven furlongs over, and six fathoms deep, of a very fierce stream, 
and difficult to pass. Diodorus Sicilus. 



126 

called the peacock only to be found in it. This fish has 
the same name of the bird, from its fins being blue, its 
scales spotted, and its tail of a yellow colour like gold, 
which it can raise and spread at pleasure. Besides, there 
is an insect* belonging to the same river, which looks like 
a white worm, and when melted, produces an oil, from 
whence issues a flame of such a nature, as only to be con- 
tained in a glass vial. This insect is the King's sole pro- 
perty, and is used by him in destroying the walls of be- 
sieged towns ; for the moment it touches the battlements, 
it is said to kindle such a flame as cannot be put out by 
any of the common means used for extinguishing fire. 

CHAP. II. 

WILD asses,f it is said, are taken in the marshy grounds. 
These animals have a horn growing out of their forehead, 
with which they fight with no less fury than bulls. The 
Indians make a cup from this horn which possesses these 
peculiar virtues, that the man who drinks out of it is not 
sick for that day ; nor sensible of pain if wounded ; nor 



* All that Philostratus says here of the qualities of this extraordi- 
nary insect agrees with the account given of it by /Elian and Ctesias, as 
quoted by Aldrovandus in his history of insects, differing only as to the 
river which produces it, they attributing to the Ganges what Philos- 
tratus attributes to the Hyphasis. Credat qui vult. 

Tyson calls it from Ctesias tlte horrible Indian worm. 

i The account of these wild asses corresponds with what may be 
found in iElian and Ctesias — two authors little to be relied on, as is 
evident from the perusal of the history of the one, and such fragments 
as remain of the other. Buffon gives no description of a wild ass, or 
onager, like what is in the text. — I believe our author must mean the 
Rhinoceros, which Buffon says, loves moist and marshy grounds, has 
one horn (though some have two) with which he attacks, and some- 
times, it is said, mortally wounds the largest elephant. His horn is 
reckoned a poweiful antidote against all kinds of poison. On this sup- 
posed virtue is founded the story in the text. 



127 

affected by fire, were he to pass through it, nor injured by 
the most noxious poisons. This cup belongs solely to the 
King, and hunting the animal is his sole diversion. Apol- 
lonius says he saw one of these wild asses, and was greatly 
pleased with it on account of its disposition. When Da- 
mis asked him, whether he believed the story of the cup r 
he said, not, till I hear the King of the country is immor- 
tal. For my opinion is, that *he who is able to supply 
himself and any one he pleases with draughts so salubrious, 
and fit for removing disease, would act but inconsistently, 
if he did not use it every day, and that even to excess : 
and who I say would blame him if he drank it even to 
intoxication ? 



CHAP. III. 

HERE Damis says,* they met with a woman of diminu- 
tive stature, who was black from her head to her bosom, 
and white to her feet, whom they fled from, as if she 
had been a monster, but he adds, that Apollonius gave 
her his hand, knowing what she was. Such a woman is 
sacred to the Indian Venus, and is born party-coloured for 
the goddess, as Apisf is amongst the Egyptians. 



CHAP. IV. 

AFTERWARDS they passed that part of Caucasus 
which is covered with various kinds of aromatic plants, 



* It is in this and other stories of a similiar complexion, that Bishop 
Parker says, our author outdoes Sir John Mandeville. 

t A God of the Egyptians, worshipped under the form of an ox. 
The ox was always chosen by some particular and distinguishing 
marks. 



123 

and stretches towards the Red Sea. Here the cinnamon 
grows on the tops of the mountains, and looks like new 
vine shoots. The place where it grows is shewn by a 
goat, an inhabitant of the mountain. This appears when 
any one offers it a little cinnamon, for it will whine and 
lick his hand like a dog, and run after him as he goes 
away, attracted evidently by the smell. And if the 
goat-herd drives it away, ft will make a plaintive moan, 
as if deprived of some favourite lotos. Among the deep 
hollows of the mountain they found frankincense-bearing 
trees of considerable heigh th, and several others of the 
aromatic kind ; besides the pepper-bearing tree, which is 
under the husbandry of the ape.* The appearance of 
this tree has not been omitted, which I shall give as de- 
livered to me. The pepper-bearing tree is like what the 
Greeks call agnos in almost every thing as well as in the 
berries containing the fruit. It grows on steep and rugged 
precipices, where man cannot approach, and is only ac- 
cessible to the apes, a people who dwell in the caves and 
hollows of the mountains .f These apes gather the pep- 
per for the Indians, and are highly valued on that account. 
For this reason they employ dogs and offensive weapons 
to defend them from the lions. The lion, it is known, 
when sick, lies in ambush for the ape, whose flesh he finds 



* The wtSijxoj of the Greeks, and the simia of the Latins, is a true 
ape, and was the subject upon which Aristotle, Pliny, and Galen, 
instituted all the physical relations they discovered between that ani- 
mal and man. — This ape is the pigmy of the ancients, whose heighth 
never rises above one fourth of that of a man. Demosthenes calls 
/Eschilies " avrorpaytnot mQnxog, apoupeticg Oivofxao;, Trafaa-ny-o; Fnrocf. 

t The servile offices performed by these creatures, might formerly, 
as it does to this day, impose upon mankind to believe, that they were 
of the same species with themselves — Philostratus calls them here the 
people of the apes, and the husbandmen of the pepper trees. It has 
been suggested, that the reason o£ their not speaking is, for fear of 
being made slaves. 



129 

a restorative in illness, of which he is even fond in his old age. 
And when he is old and unable to hunt the stag, or the 
boar, he uses the strength which is left to get the ape 
within his claws, whom he devours most greedily. But 
the Indians, from a grateful sense of what they owe these 
apes, never desert them, and often fight the lion for their 
sake. The manner in which the pepper is gathered is this, 
the Indians go to such trees as are within their reach, and 
from them they pull off the pepper, which they toss about 
as if a thing despised and of no value ; and then throw it into 
certain pits prepared beforehand. The apes* seeing all this 
from their lofty and inaccessible stations, imitate it as soon 
as night comes on, and pluck off the little boughs which they 
throw into these pits. As soon as it is day light the 
Indians come, and carry away heaps of spice got without 
any trouble, and whilst they were asleep. 



CHAP. V. 

OUR travellers say, when they arrived at the top of the 
mountain, they saw a plain stretching before them divided 
by many water-cuts, of which some were in oblique, and 
others in right lines, all derived from the Ganges. These 
water-cutsf served partly for land-marks, and partly for 
irrigation in case of a dry season. Of all India this plain 
was the most extensive, and its soil the most fruitful of 
the whole country ; it extends fifteen days' journey in 
length towards the Ganges, and eighteen in breadth from 
the sea to the mountain of the apes. The earth of it is 
black, and abounds in all kinds of productions. Here 



• Apes imitate the mechanical action* of man so completely, that 
they seem to be excited by the same sensations. 

t In Egypt numberless canals are cut iu order to convey the waters 
of the Nile to all parts of the country. 

K 



ISO 

they saw ears of corn growing on stalks which stood up- 
right like reeds. Beans three times larger than those of 
Egypt : sessamum and millet of an enormous size, and a 
kind of nuts, of which some are preserved in our temples 
as matters of curiosity and shew. Besides the above, 
they saw a species of small vines resembling those grow- 
ing in Meonia and Lydia, # which yielded a wine that was 
excellent both for its taste and smell. Here they met with 
a tree like a laurel which had a husk of the size of a 
pomegranate, wherein was an apple of an hyacinthine co- 
lour, considered the sweetest of all growing in these cli- 
mates. 



CHAP. VI. 

WHEN they were coming down from the mountain they 
say they assisted at a dragon-hunt,*|- of which it is neces- 
sary to make mention. For my part I think it would be 
absurd to enter into a dissertation with the curious on the 
subject of how a hare is, and may be taken, and at the 
same time pass over the account of a chase at once manly 
and divine, and one in which the hero of our history par- 
ticipated. All India is girt J in with dragons of a prodi- 
gious bulk as it were with zones. Not only the marshes 



* Meonia and Lydia are not distinct countries, but the same. Part 
of Lydia was known by the name of Meonia, — the neighbourhood of 
mount Tmolus, and the country watered by the Pactolus. 

t In the following account given by Philostratus of the different 
species of dragons, fiction and truth are so blended that it is difficult 
to separate the one from the other. 

t The word x*T£7a>ja< — in the text, is used with elegance here by 
Philostratus, says Olearius, to shew that these dragons by the im- 
mense folds of their huge bodies seemed to represent zones. 

Mr. Maurice, in his Indian Antiquities, mentions temples in the form 
of serpents, whose enormous folds extended over a wide tract of land, 
and thence called Dracontia. 



I 



131 

and the fens, but the mountains and hills abounded with 
them. The dragons living in the marshes are sluggish in 
their natures, and thirty cubits long ; # they have no crest* 
on their heads, and look like she-dragons. Their backs 
are black, without having as many scales as the others, and 
of them Homer has spoken more learnedlyf than the 
other poets, for the one he mentions near the fountain at 
Aulis was red-backed. Some poets say, that the dragon 
of the Nemean grove was like it, and was moreover crest- 
ed. Dragons of this description are not easily to b^ 
found in marshes. 



CHAP. VII. 

THE dragonsj living at the foot of mountains and hills, 
rush down to the plains in search of prey, and surpass in 
every thing those living in the marshes. They are larger, 
swifter§ than the most rapid rivers, and nothing is able to 
escape their pursuit. They have a crest which is small 
when they are young, but increases with their growth till 
it becomes of considerable size. Of this species of dra- 



* Owen, in his history of serpents says, those of India exceed most 
in largeness and longitude. In the tower of London is the skin of one 
which is of vast bulk. 



•And from the crnmbling ground 



A mighty dragon shot, of dire portent ; 
From Jove himself the dreadful sign was sent 
Strait to the tree his sanguine spires he roll'd, 
And curl'd around in many a winding fold. 

Homer, Pope, b. ii. . 

X The dragon described in this chapter seems to be that called by 
Owen, Acontia. 

§ Hence probably the fable of their having wings, which are con- 
stantly given them by the poets. It is called by the Latins serpau 
jaeukaris.— By the modern Greeks sacta, a dart— for it flies like as 
arrow at its prey. 

K 2 



132 

gons, # some arc of a fiery-red, with backs like a saw, and 
have beards — these dragons raise their necks higher than 
the others, and their scales shine like silver. The pupils 
of their eyes are like stones of fire,f and possess a virtue 
which is all powerful in the discovery of secrets. When- 
ever the dragonsj of the plain attack the elephant, they 
always become the prey of the hunter, for the destruction 
of both generally terminates the contest. He who is 
lucky enough to get possession of the dragon is rewarded 
with the eyes, skin, and teeth. The dragons of this class 
are not unlike immense fish, with the exception alone of 
their bodies being thinner, and more flexible — they have 
teeth as strong as whales. 



CHAP. VIII. 

THE mountain dragons^ have scales of a golden colour, 
and are larger than the dragons of the plain. They have 
beards yellow, and bushy, and eye-brows more elevated 



* And you, ye dragons ; of the scaly race, 

Whom glittering gold, and shining armour grace, &c. 

Luc an, b. ix. 
t Some have observed, that about the Ganges, are dragons whose 
eyes sparkle like precious stones. Owen's History of Serpents. 

J Not elephants are by their larger size 
Secure, but with the rest become your prize. 
Resistless in your might, you all invade 
And for destruction need not poison's aid. 

Lucan, b. ix. 
Diodorus Siculus says, " frequent and terrible scuffles happen be* 
tween elephants and serpents in the great Indian deserts, when they 
meet at a spring, in which, both sometimes perish." 

§ I believe the dragon described here is the basilisk, or cockatrice, 
which Owen says, is gross in body, of fiery eyes, and sharp head, on 
-which it wears a crest like a cock's comb. The very sight of this ser- 
pent, and sound of his voice, puts all others to flight, and makes them 
relinquish their prey. 



133 

than the others, underneath which are eyes of a stern and 
terrible aspect. In their tortuous windings under the 
earth they make a noise like that of brass :* their crests 
are red, from which flashes a flame brighter than that of 
a torch. These dragons conquer the elephant, and in 
their turn are conquered by the Indians in the manner 
following ;*f they spread a scarlet coat before their holes, 
embroidered with golden letters, which being charmed, 
bring on a sleep, that at last subdues those eyes, which 
would be otherwise invincible. Other spells, consisting of 
many words, extracted from their occult philosophy, are 
used, by which the dragon is so fascinated, that he puts his 
head out of his hole and falls asleep over the letters. 
Whilst he remains in this situation the Indians rush upon 
him with pole-axes, and after cutting off his head, strip it 
of all its precious stones. The stones found in the heads 
of these mountain dragons,;}; are said to have a transparent 
lustre, which emit a variety of colours, and possess that 
kind of virtue attributed to the ring of Gyges.§ But it 
often happens that these dragons seize the Indian in spite 
of his pole-axe and cunning, and carry him off to his den, 
by which he makes the whole mountain tremble. We 
were told of their inhabiting the mountains near the Red 
Sea, from which are heard horrible hissings, and that they 
sometimes are known to go down to the sea|| and swim to 



t Owen takes notice of this mode of the Indians charming ser- 
pents. 

X Called Draconites y precious stones taken out of the brains of a dra? 
gon whilst alive : for if not extracted whilst alive, they never acquire 
the hardness and form of precious stones, because his envy and malice 
is such, that the moment he perceives himself dying, he takes care to 
destroy their virtue. Pliny, b. xxxvii. 

§ The virtue of whose ring, it is well known, rendered the wearer 
invisible. 

|| In Ethiopia, as well as in India, are dragons tweuty cubits long. 
It is said, four or five of them woven together after the manner of 

hurdles 



134 



a great distance from the shore. Of the length of their 
lives we were not able to come at any certainty, and if 
we were, I fear no credit would be given to it. This is 
all I have been able to learn on the subject of dragons. 



CHAP. IX. 

THE city to which they next came, was situate at the 
foot of a mountain, and was one of the largest in the 
country called Paraca,* in the center of which were seen 
suspended the heads of many dragons, as a proof of the 
Indians exercising themselves from their youth in the 
hunting of them. It is said the people of Paraca under- 
stand the cries and thoughts of animals, some by eating 
the heart, and others the liver of dragons. Whilst Apol- 
lonius and his companions were continuing their journey, 
they heard the sound of a pipe, which happened to be that 
of a shepherd tending his flock. In this country the In- 
dians feed white hinds, whose milk they are fond of, from 
an opinion of its being of a nutricious quality. 



CHAP. X. 

FOR four days they travelled through a rich and well-cul- 
tivated country, and at last arrived at the castle of the 
wise men. The guide as he approached the hill,f shewed 



hurdles, pass the sea for better pasturage, cutting the waves, and 
bearing np their heads aloft, which serve them in the place of sails. 

Pliny, b. viii. 

* Paraca — which I have not been able to find in any geographical 
book. 

t The hill where these wise men, or Brachmens, resided, corresponds, 
says Mr. Wilford, with a place called Trilocinarayana, near the banks 
of the river Cedara-ganga, 



135 

such signs of fear that the sweat ran down his face, which 
caused him to stop his camel, from which he alighted. 
Apollonius, who knew well where he was, laughed at his 
fears, and said, should this man get safe into harbour after 
being long at sea, I believe he would not be satisfied, nor 
relish the land. When he said this, he commanded his 
camel to kneel down, a custom to which he was well used. 
What chiefly caused the guide's alarm, was his near ap- 
proach to the seat of those sages, who are more respect- 
ed by the Indians than the King himself, who, though 
lord of the soil, advises with them in every thing as if 
they were so many oracles. They also inform him of 
what is, or is not best to be done, and use the justest 
arguments on the occasion. 



CHAP. XL 

APOLLONIUS and his companions who had thoughts 
of remaining some time in a neighbouring village, not 
above a mile from the hill, changed their intention when 
they saw a young man coming to them with all the haste 
he could. He was one of the blackest of the Indians, 
and had between his eye-brow the figure of a shining 
moon. Such an appearance was afterwards seen in an 
Ethiopian named Memnon, when a boy, who was the pu- 
pil of Herodes the sophist. He had this moon whilst 
young, but as he arrived to man's estate, its brightness 
diminished, and at last entirely vanished. The youth who 
waited on Apollonius carried in his hand a golden anchor,* 



* In all negotiations in India, the public faith, when once plighted 
in any treaty, was inviolably preserved. The figure of an anchor, the 
sacred symbol of truth and stability, was engraved upon the grand im- 
perial signet used upon those solemn occasions. Maurice. 



156 

-which by the Indians is considered as a caduceus, on ac- 
count of the power it possessed of fixing all things. 

CHAP. XII. 

WHEN the youth approached Apollonius he addressed 
him in the Greek tongue, which created no surprise, on 
account of all the people of the village speaking the same 
language. But when he called our philosopher by his 
name, and gave him the usual address of salutation, all 
were astonished except Apollonius, who assumed great 
hopes from auguring so well of the mission. This made 
him turn to Damis, and say, we are now come to men 
who are wise indeed, and who seem to excel in the know- 
ledge of futurity. Then he asked the Indian what he 
ought to do, for he was burning with the desire of con- 
versing with the sages. The Indian answered, you must 
leave your companions here, and follow me without delay, 
for it is AyToi. — They who order — by using which word, 
Apollonius acknowledged the full force of the' ipse dixit 
of Pythagoras,* and folio wed with joy. 



CHAP. XIII. 

THE hill inhabited by these wise men was as high as the 
Acropolis of Athens, and rose like it from a level plain. 
It was defended on all sides by an immense pile of rocks, 
on which were to be 'seen in many places the traces of 



* When the disciples of Pythagoras asserted any filing in dispute, 
if they were questioned, why it was so, they used to answer ipse dixit, 
He said it, which He was Pythagoras. This avro? e<pa, was, amongst 
them, the first and greatest of doctrines, his judgment being a reason 
free from, and above all examination and censure. Stanley. 



197 

cloven feet, of beards, and faces ; and in some parts the 
j marks which might be supposed to have been made 
by creatures falling on their backs. For when Bacchus 
attacked the place along with Hercules, he ordered his 
Pans to make the assault, whom he thought fully sufficient 
to take it. But thunderstruck by the superior skill of the 
sages, they tumbled one upon another, and left imprinted 
on the rocks the marks of whatever parts were most de- 
fective in their bodies. A cloud was observed to cover 
the hill where these sages live, by means of which they 
can at pleasure render themselves either visible or not. 
They saw no gates, and this must have been owing to the 
clouds surrounding the mount, and preventing their seeing 
whether it was open or shut. 



CHAP. XIV. 

APOLLONIUS says he ascended the hill on that side 
which looked towards the south, under the^guidance of his 
trusty Indian. The first thing he saw there, was a well 
about four paces wide, out of which a blue vapour rose to 
the top of it. This vapour, when the sun comes to the 
meridian, is rarified by its rays, and whenever it rises to a 
certain height, gives the beholders the appearance of a 
rainbow. He was informed also that the earth at the 
bottom of this well was of the nature of Sandarach,* 
that the water was reputed hallowed, that no one was 
permitted to drink it, or draw it, and that it was believed 



* Sandarach, in natural history, a very beautiful native fossil, though 
often confounded with red-arsenic. It is a pure substance, of an 
orange scarlet, and is quite transparent. When exposed to a moderate 
heat, it melts and flows like oil. Whether this well is not one of the 
Petroleum wells may admit of a question, which I am not able to 
solve. 



138 

to be so sacred, that all the people in the neighbourhood 
swore by it. Near this well was a small crater of fire, 
from whence ascended a flame of the colour of lead, with- 
out either smoke or smell, and what was most remarkable, 
it always remained full, without ever overflowing. It is in 
this the Indians cleanse themselves from all involuntary 
crimes, in consequence of which the wise men call the 
well — the zvell of discovejy ; and the fire, the fire of par- 
don. Here were seen two vessels made of black stone,* 
the one named the vessel of the winds, and the other, that 
of the rains. Whenever India labours under a long 
drought, they open the vessel of the rains, which sends 
forth clouds that refresh the whole land ; and on the other 
hand, when rain falls in too great abundance, the vessel is 
shut, and the rain ceases. The vessel of the winds is, I 
think, somewhat of the nature of the bags of Eolus, because, 
when it is opened, such a wind rushes out,f as serves to 
cool and fertilize the country. Our travellers say, they 
were not surprised to find images of the Gods of Indian 
or Egyptian workmanship,^ but when they saw some of 



* Fast by the threshold of Jove's courts are placed 
Two casks, one stored with evil, one with good, 
From which the God dispenses as he wills. 

Homer, b. xxix. Iliad. 
Olearius is of opinion that the Indians might have had, perhaps, two 
vessels made for the purpose of marking the several changes in the 
seasons, something like our thermometers and barometers, and that 
simple people confounding the cause with the effect, might have sup- 
posed these vessels the causes of the wind or rain. 

t They loos'd the bag ; forth issued all the winds, &c. 

Homer, Od. b. x. 
X Sir William Jones has drawn a parallel between the Gods adored 
in three very different nations, Greece, Italy, and India; but has not 
presumed to decide which was the original system, and which the 
copy. Since Egypt appears to have been the grand source of know- 
ledge for the western, and India for the more eastern parts of the globe, 
it may be asked whether the Egyptians communicated their mytholo* 



130 

the highest antiquity among the Greeks, statues for 
instance of Minerva Polias, Apollo Delius, Bacchus, and 
Aniycleus, erected by the Indians,* together with a re- 
ligious worship performed after the Grecian ritual, they 
were surprised indeed. The natives of this country have 
an idea of inhabiting the middle region of India, and 
therefore call the top of the aforesaid hill the uavel of the 
world. On it they worship fire,i- which they boast of 
drawing down from the rays of the sun, and sing hymns 
in honour of him every day at noon. 



CHAP. XV. 

ON the sole testimony of Apollonius rests the account 
we are to give of the wise men,J and the manner of 
their spending their time. In a conversation he had with 
the Egyptians, he says, " I have seen the Brachmans of 
India dwelling on the earth, and not on the earth" — " de- 



gy, or philosophy to the Hindus, or conversely. This Sir William 
has stated without his being able to draw any satisfactory conclu- 
sion. 

* Apollo — called Amycleus, had a rich and magnificent temple at 
Amyclae. in Italy, surrounded with delightful groves. — The inhabitants 
of Amyclae were strict followers of the precepts of Pythagoras, and 
therefore abstained from all flesh. 

t The worship of solar, or vestal fires, may be ascribed to an enthu- 
siastic admiration of Nature's wonderful powers, and it seem, as far 
as I can yet understand the Vedas, to be the principal worship recom- 
mended. Sir W. Jones. 

% Apollonius most certainly, says Mr. Wilford, in his essay on Egypt, 
&c. had no knowledge of the Indian language, nor is it on the whole, 
adds he, credible, that he ever was in India or Ethiopia, or even at 
Babylon : he never wrote an account of his travels, but the sophist 
Philostratus, who seems to have had a particular design in writing the 
history of his life, might have possessed valuable materials, by the 
occasional use of which he imposed more easily on the public. 



140 

fended without walls,"* " possessing nothing, and yet 
having every thing/'f Expressions of a dark and enigma- 
tical nature. But Damis says, they sleep on the ground, 
which is first spread with grass, wherein they delight ; that 
he has seen them walking in the air at two cubits distance 
from the earth, J not for the purpose of exciting admiration, 
of which they are not guilty, but from an idea that what they 
do in such an approximation to the sun,§ is done in the 
way most acceptable to that luminary. The fire which 
they extract from the sun's rays, corporeal as it is, is not 
kept, it is said, on the altars or hearths, but like rays 
refracted in water by the sun, # * is kept aloft floating in 
the air. By day they pray to the sun,f f who superintends 
the seasons, to be propitious to the land, and make India 
prosperous. By night they adore his rays, beseeching 
them not to be angry with them on account of the dark- 
ness, but may remain such as when extracted by them 



* Ammianus Marcellinus says, the Brachmans inhabited villages, not 
fortified with walls. 

t No man was more unfit than Damis for explaining a philosophical 
enigma, to whose simplicity, says Olearlus, we are indebted for many 
of the fabulous relations that are to be found in this life of Apollo- 
nius. 

t Ammianus Marcellinus, in speaking of Maximin being raised to 
some high dignity, says, he leaped with joy, and danced rather than 
walked — anxious, as it is said, to imitate the Brachmans, who walked 
aloft in the air amidst their altars. 

§ A gentleman told me he was present at a meeting of jumpers, in 
Glamorganshire, who said, that in proportion as they jumped high, they 
approached nearer to the lamb. Such is the nature of enthusiasm 
every where, and at all times. 

** The difficulty is, how the rays were preserved during the night: 
Olearius in a note attributes the whole to some knowledge they might 
have had of phosplwrus. 

tt Sir William Jones supposes the whole system of religious fables 
rose like the Nile from several distinct sources, but that one great 
spring and fountain of all idolatry in the four quarters of the globe, 
was the veneration paid by men to the vast body of fire, which " looks 
from his sole dominion like the God of this new world." 



141 

from the sun. This is what Damis says Apollonius 
meant to convey, by saying " that the Brachmans are on the 
earth, and not on the earth." The next phrase of being 
defended without walls, is to apply to the sky under which 
they live. For though they appear to live in the open air, 
they can at pleasure cover themselves with a shade which 
protects them from the wet when it rains ; and whenever 
they please they can enjoy the sun. The last phrase " of 
possessing nothing, and yet having every thing," is thus ex- 
plained by Damis. " The fountains which flow from the 
earth for the votaries of Bacchus, whenever he shakes it, 
and them together, flow also for these Indians, when they 
drink themselves, or make others drink." Therefore 
Apollonius was not wrong when he said that these men 
who have what they wish without any previous prepara- 
tion, might be considered as possessing what they have 
not. The sages let their hair grow after the manner of 
the antient Lacedemonians, Thurians, Tarentines, Me- 
lians, and all other people who adopted and prized the 
institutions of the Spartans. They wear on their heads 
white mitres, and have no cloathing except short tunics. 
The raw material out of which these garments are made, 
is a kind of flax,* the spontaneous growth of the soil, 

* Hierocles says, that nothing is more worth seeing than the Brach- 
mans, a people addicted to philosophy, and particularly devoted to the 
tun, who eat no manner of flesh, who live always abroad in the open 
air, who above all things honour and cultivate truth, and who wear 
only robes made of linen they get from the rocks ; for, adds he, they 
take certain small threads that grow upon the rocks, spin them, and 
make of them their cloaths, which will not burn in the fire, and which, 
they never wash ; but when they are dirty, throw them in the midst of 
a burning flame, and they become white and transparent. 

This flax is supposed to be the asbestinum linteum, mentioned by 
Pliny — which according to his account, grows in deserts and places 
parched and burnt up with the sun, and where rains never fall. The 
country is rocky that produces it, and the stone itself is called asbestus, 
from which the flax is made ; and no other stone can be found capable, 
of yielding such a flax or wool. 



142 

white as what grows in Pamphylia, but of a finer and 
softer texture. It contains also an unctuous matter* from 
which an oil is extracted. From this flax they make all 
their sacred garments, and if any other person but an Indian 
was to attempt to pull it, the earth would not yield it. 
The virtues of the ringf and wand borne by these Indian 
sages, are of great force, and are both of high repute for 
the discovering secrets. 



CHAP. XVI. 

AS soon as Apollonius drew near, the sages received him 
with open arms, and much greeting. He found Iarchas 
sitting on a high throne of black brass, that was adorned 
with various figures of wrought gold. The other seats 
were of brass, had no figures, were not so high, and 
were ranged in regular order below the throne. As soon 
as Iarchas saw Apollonius, he saluted him in the Greek 
tongue, and asked for the epistle which he brought from 
the King of India. Whilst Apollonius seemed amazed at 
this first instance of his superior knowledge ; Iarchas said, 
in that epistle, Apollonius, there is a letter deficient 
(meaning a delta) and when perused, it was found to be 
exactly so. As soon as the epistle was read over, Iarchas 
said, what is your opinion of us, Apollonius? That, I 
think, I need not mention, said Apollonius, as it is evi- 
dent, from the journey I have taken on your account, 
which was never attempted before by any of my country- 
men. But, said Iarchas, do you think we possess more 
knowledge than yourself, I do, said Apollonius, I am 



* Kircher, in his Mount Sina, says, that notwithstanding the external 
surface of the asbestus is dry and thready, yet it has within a viscid 
oily humour which cannot be conquered by fire. 

t Of the virtues of the ring and wand hereafter. 



143 

confident your knowledge is of a higher, and more divine 
character than ours, and were I to make no addition to 
my own by conversing with you, I should have the plea- 
sure at least of knowing, that you have nothing to teach 
me. Then, said Iarchas, other men are in the habit of 
asking strangers on their arrival " who they are," and 
" what they come for ?" But the first proof we give of 
our knowledge is, that we know all this before hand. 
And saying this, he gave Apollonius the whole history of 
his family both by father and mother's side, with what 
passed at iEgae, and his first interview with Damis, and 
the conversation they had together on the way, and what 
they learnt from others. This was all related by the In- 
dian sage, in a clear distinct order, without any hesitation, 
as if he had travelled with them. Apollonius amazed at 
all he heard, asked how he had come by this knowledge.* 
To which he said, thou, Apollonius, art come to share in 
this wisdom, but art not yet in full possession of all. 
And will you, said Apollonius, make me acquainted with 
it ? I will, replied he, with all my heart, for the com- 
munication of knowledge is much more becoming the 
character of philosophy, than the invidious concealment 
of what ought to be known. But I see, Apollonius, you 
have a good memory,*!* and that we honor most among 



* Notwithstanding this, Damis says, he knew the very thoughts of .. / 

men. Herein is ^glaring inconsistency, for ApoUonius is said to have N *i***' t -*nSL**C^ 
known the thoughts of men, and yet on the present occasion he seems 
to be astonished that Iarchas the Indian priest was acquainted with his 
story. t» £**v«W **, ^^Wt^^W d*-yu** - 

t Memory, in the Greek mythology, was the mother of the muses, 
because it is to that mental endowment that mankind are indebted for 
their progress in all knowledge. 

" T' impress these precepts on their hearts I sent 
" Memory, the active mother of all wisdom." 
Prometheus chained — 

jEschylus. 



144 

the Gods. Have you been able, said Apollonius, to 
form any opinion of my natural disposition ? Yes, said 
he, we can discern the different dispositions of the mind 
by a variety of ways. But as mid-day is drawing nigh, 
and it being time to prepare for the offerings which are 
to be made to the Gods, I think we had better devote 
ourselves to their service, and afterwards discourse on 
whatever subjects you please ; besides, Apollonius, you 
have full permission to assist at our religious worship. 
By Jupiter, returned Apollonius, I should wrong Cauca- 
sus and the Indus, which I have passed in my journey here, 
did I not wish to indulge to my heart's full content in your 
religious duties. Then do so, said Iarchas, and follow 
me. 



CHAP. XVII. 

THEY went to a spring of water, which Damis says (who 
afterwards saw it) was like the fountain Dirce in Beotia, 
and there undressed and anointed their heads with a pre- 
paration of amber,* which gave such a glowing heat to 
their skins, as made them smoke, and perspire as profusely 
as if they had been in a hot bath. After this they plunged 
into the water, wherein they bathed and purified them- 
selves, and so proceeded to a temple crowned with gar- 
lands, and singing hymns with all due solemnity. As soon 
as they entered the temple, they formed themselves into 
the figure of the antient chorus, with Iarchas at their head 
as Coryphaeus. Then with staves uplifted they struck the 
earth all together, which made it heave,*f* and swell like 



* One proof that these Indian philosophers or Brachmans did not 
go naked — or were not literally Gymnosophists. 

t Besides the effect produced in the text by the staves, which these 
wise men carried, another effect is attributed to their magical virtue, 
which was that of scaring evil spirits and ghosts. 



145 

the waves of the sea) by this they were elevated to the 
heighth of almost two cubits above it. Meanwhile they 
continued singing a hymn not unlike one of Sophocles's 
paeons that is sung at Athens in honor of iEsculapius. 
When alighted on the ground, Iarchas called the boy 
with the anchor, and said, take care of the companions of 
Apollonius. The boy obeyed his orders with the velocity 
of a bird, and returning, said, I have done what you requir- 
ed. The sages all took their seats, after having spent much 
time in religious exercises. Iarchas then ordered the boy to 
bring the throne of Phraotes for the wise Apollonius, on 
which to sit and dispute with them. 



CHAP. XVIII. 

WHEN Apollonius took his seat, Iarchas said to him, 
propose what question you please, for you now speak to 
men who know all things. Apollonius asked whether they 
knew themselves, which he did, from an idea that like the 
Greeks they would consider the fy«0» Vsat/Tov as a matter of 
difficult solution.* But contrary to his expectation, Iar- 
chas replied, we know all things because we know our- 
selves, for there is not one of us who would have been 
admitted to the study of philosophy, had he not had 
that previous knowledge. Hereupon Apollonius calling 
to mind what he heard from Phraotes as the necessary 
qualification for all who cultivated science, that they should 
first examine themselves before they engaged in such pur- 
suits ; acquiesced in the answer, from a conviction of its 



* e ccelo descendit fyv«0» navrov. Juvenal. 

This apophthegm of Chilo the Lacedemonian, was with others written 
in golden letters on the temple of Apollo at Delphi, and wa» therefore 
believed to come froto heaven. 

L 



146 

truth. Apollonius next asked what they thought of 
themselves? Iarchas replied, Gods. And why Gods, 
said Apollonius, because we are good men, was the 
answer, which Apollonius considered so replete with 
wisdom, that he afterwards used it in his apology to Do- 
mitian. 



CHAP. XIX. 

APOLLONIUS now adopting his usual style of inter- 
rogatory, said, what is your opinion of the soul ? The 
same, said Iarchas,* as was delivered by Pythagoras to 
you, and by us to the Egyptians. Am I to understand, 
said Apollonius, that as Pythagoras said he was Euphor- 
bus, so you were some Trojan, or Greek, or other per- 
son, before you became possessed of your present body. 
To this the Indian said, Troy was destroyed by the Greeks 
who sailed to its shores, and you are destroyed by the 
stories told of it. For from an idea that the men who 
fought at Troy were the only men to be esteemed, you 
overlook many of a more divine character born in your 
country, in Egypt, and India. But since you have 
questioned me on the subject of my former body, tell me 
of all those who fought for, or against Troy, who was the 
most worthy of admiration ? Achilles, the son of Peleus 
and Thetis, replied Apollonius, for he is celebrated by 
Homer as the most beautiful and valiant of all the Greeks, 
and his actions are described to be above all others. The 
Ajaxes and Nireuses are also celebrated for their beauty 
and courage, but only next after Achilles. With whom, 
said Iarchas, you may compare my progenitor, or rather 



* Herein Iarcbas supposes the Egyptians derived their opinions 
from the Indians through the Ethiopians, who were, as Iarchas says, 
a coloDy from India. 



147 

the body of my progenitor, for that was the light in which 
Pythagoras considered Euphorbus. 

CHAP. XX. 

THERE was a time, said [arenas, when this country was 
inhabited by the Ethiopians, an Indian nation. Ethiopia 
did not then exist,* for Egypt stretched its boundaries 
beyond Meroe and the cataracts, taking in not only the 
sources, but the mouths of the Nile. Whilst the Ethio- 
pians lived in this country now possessed by us, and were 
obedient to the rule of a sovereign, named Ganges, they 
had all the productions of the earth in plenty, and were 
secure under the protection of heaven. But when they 
murdered their King, they were no longer esteemed as 
pure by the rest of the Indians, and the land produced 
not what was sufficient for their subsistence. Their corn 
was destroyed before it came to the ear, miscarriages were 
frequent among the women, and the land was not able to 
support their flocks and cattle. Wherever they fixed on 
for building a city, the ground gave way, and sunk under 
their feet. The ghost of their King Ganges haunted them 

• Eusebius speaks of the migration of the Ethiopians from India 
into Egypt. Sir William Jones believes that the Ethiops of Meroe, 
were the same people with the first Egyptians, and consequently, as it 
might be easily shown, with the original Hindus. It is very remark- 
able, he says, that Mr. Bruce, and Mr. Bryant, have proved that the 
Greeks gave the appellation of Indians both to the Southern nations of 
Africk, and to the people of Hindostan; and he adds, that it is no less 
observable, that according to Ephorus, quoted by Strabo, they call- 
ed all the Southern nations in the world Ethiopians, thus using Indian 
and Ethiopian, as convertible terms. Both India and Ethiopia were 
used by the ancients as general terms to signify any remote uncivilized 
country, as 

Super et Garamantes et Indos 

Proferet imperium. 

Virgil. 

The emigration of Cntila-cesas from India to Egypt is the one no 

ticed by Philostiates iu the text. Wilford's Essay on Egypt, Sfc. 

L 2 



148 

wherever they went, and struck a terror into the lower 
orders, which never ceased till an atonement was made to 
the earth, of the perpetrators of the murder, and the shed- 
ders of the King's blood. This Ganges, whose beauty was 
above other men, was ten cubits high, and was the son of 
the river Ganges. The deluge which the father brought 
on India, was turned into the Red Sea by his son, in con- 
sequence of which the father became again friendly to the 
land. Whilst this King lived, the earth brought forth its 
fruits in abundance, but when he died, it took ample 
vengeance. # Homer says, Achilles sailed to Troy for the 
sake of Helen, and subdued twelve cities by sea, and 
eleven by land, but adds, that when his mistress was forced 
from him by Agamemnon, he became cruet and ungo- 
vernable. Let us compare in these circumstances the 
Grecian hero with this Indian Prince. He was the 
founder of sixty cities, the most famous in the country. 
To build will be allowed to be more glorious that to de- 
stroy. He next drove out the Scythians who marched an 
army over Caucasus, and infested the country. To give 



* The basis of this tale, says Mr. Wilford, is unquestionably Indian, 
though it be clearly corrupted in some particulars. No Brahman was 
ever named Iarchas, a corruption possibly of Yasca, the name of a sage 
who wrote a glossary for the Vidas. Ganges was never considered as 
a Male Deity, but the son of Ganga was a celebrated hero, According 
to the Hindu legend, when Capila had destroyed the children of 
Sagara, and his army of Cutila-cesas had migrated to another Dwipa f 
the India monarch was long inconsolable, but his great grandson 
Bhagiratha conducted the present Ganges to the spot where the ashes 
of his kindred lay, and they were no sooner touched by the divine 
water, than 60,000 princes sprang to life again. Another story is, that 
when Ganges and other great rivers were swoln to such a degree that 
the goddess of earth was apprehensive of a general inundation, Bhagi- 
ratha (leaving other holy men to take care of inferior rivers) led the 
Ganges (from him named Bhagiratha) to the ocean, and rendered her 
salutary to the earth, instead of destructive to it. 

These tales, adds Mr. Wilford, are obviously the same in substance 
with that in the text, with some alterations, &c. 



149 

liberty to a country is unquestionably a higher instance of 
virtue than to enslave a city, and that for a woman, who 
probably was not carried away against her consent. Be- 
sides, the Prince who reigned in that country, at present 
under the subjection of Phraotes, contrary to all justice, 
carried off the wife of Ganges, and her virtue was such, 
that he would not break the alliance entered into with him, 
saying, that in spite of the injury offered to himself, he 
would not violate a treaty which he had religiously sworn 
to observe. 

CHAP. XXI. 

I COULD enumerate many more actions of this man, 
said larchas, were I not afraid of speaking in my own 
praise, as being the identical person myself, which I 
proved when only four years of age. Ganges,* it is 
known, buried in the ground seven adamantine swords, 
which he did for the purpose of freeing the country ever 
after of all hostile alarm. The God's ordered a sacrifice 
to be offered on the very spot where the swords were hid, 
but the place no one could point out. Though at the time 
but young, f I conducted the interpreters of the oracle to 
the place where I commanded them to dig, and said the 
swords were deposited. 



• The Indians, 6ays Ctesias, used to bury iron in the ground for the 
purpose of averting the consequences arising from clouds, and hail, and 
whirlwinds, and he adds, that he himself was twice a witness to the 
truth of the experiment. 

t Ev'n I, who these mysterious truths declare, 
Was once Euphorbus in the Trojan war ; 
My name and lineage I remember well, 
And how in fight by Sparta's King I fell. 
In Argive Juno's fane I late beheld 
My buckler hung on high, and own'd my former shield. 

Ovid, b. 15. 



1$Q 



CHAP. XXII. 

J5E not surprised, said Iarchas, at my transformation 
from Indian to Indian. Here is a youth (and he pointed 
to one not more than twenty years of age) who is above all 
men I know, best qualified for cultivating philosophy, one 
who is in good health, of an excellent constitution, and 
capable of enduring whatever pain arises from fire or 
amputation, and yet, though such as I have described, he 
hates philosophy. Under what species of disease, said 
Apollonius, do you think he labors ? For it is extraordi- 
nary to think that a man of such endowments whilst in your 
society, should neither cultivate nor love philosophy. The 
truth is, said Iarchas, he is not in our company, but rather 
in our keeping, for like a lion taken and confined against 
his will, he looks upon us with an evil eye, even at the 
time when flattering and caressing him. This youth was 
Palamedes, who served in the war at Troy, where he had 
to encounter two most bitter enemies, Ulysses, and Homer, 
one of whom laid an ambuscade for him, in consequence 
of which he was stoned to death, and the other deemed 
him unworthy of any place in his poems. When he found 
that his wisdom was of no avail, and his name unrecorded 
by Homer, who has noticed many others of less celebrity, 
and besides that he was outwitted by Ulysses, though inno- 
cent, he hates philosophy, and deplores his own fate. And 
this is the Palamedes who wrote without ever having been 
taught the use of letters. 



CHAP. XXIII. 

WHILST they were talking in this manner, a messenger 
came to Iarchas, saying, the King will wait on you at mid- 
day to discourse on some business of his own. Iarchas 



151 

said to him, let him come, for he may go back better than 
he came, after conversing with this Greek. Having given 
this answer, he recurred to his first discourse, and asked 
Apollonius if he could tell the first body in which he ap- 
peared, and in what condition of life he was before the 
one he was in at present ? To this Apollonius replied, 
as it was ignoble, I remember little of it. What, said 
Iarchas, do you consider the being pilot of an Egyptian 
vessel, as ignoble? for I know you were one. You are 
right, said Apollonius, I was, and yet consider that con- 
dition of life not only ignoble, but detestable in the 
world. I know a knowledge of maritime affairs is held as 
reputable as that of governing a city or commanding an 
army, but it has fallen into contempt on account of the 
character of such as follow it. But the action of all others 
on which I pride myself in that state, is not one which has 
entitled me to much praise. What is the action to which 
you allude? returned Iarchas; is it the having doubled 
Capes Malea and Sunuim, by a skilful management of 
your vessel ? or the having been able to discern whether 
the winds blew from the prow or stern ? or having sur- 
mounted all the difficulties attending on the navigation round 
the rocky and hollow shores of Eubea? 



CHAP. XXIV. 

SINCE, said Apollonius, you compel me as it were to 
speak of naval affairs, listen, and I will tell you what I 
think was my principle exploit. A nest of pirates infested 
the Phenician sea, whose business was visiting all the cities 
on the sea-coast, and learning what were the cargoes of the 
several merchant- men belonging to each. These pirates 
had certain emissaries in league with them, who as soon as 
they learnt that my vessel was richly laden, took me apart, 
and asked me how much of the freight came to my share ? 



152 

I told them one thousand drachmas, which was the truth, 
there being but four of us who had the command of the 
ship. They asked if I had a house ? I said, I had a small 
cabin in the isle of Patmos, where Proteus dwelt of 
old. They next asked, if I did not prefer the land to the 
sea, a house to a cabin, and ten thousand drachmas to a 
thousand, with an exemption from all the dangers to which 
a sailor's life is exposed. I replied in the affirmative ; and 
said, I did not like turning pirate, as I was just beginning 
to excel in my profession as a pilot, and had acquired repu- 
tation enough to be crowned for ray nautical skill. But 
they persevered, and at last said they would give me a 
purse of ten thousand drachmas, if I would comply with 
their wishes.- All this time I talked with them, as one 
who wished to shew himself most devoted to them. Where- 
upon they owned themselves the agents of the pirates, and 
without more ado, requested my permitting them to take 
possession of the ship, with the further request of not re- 
turning to the city, after having once hoisted sail, but casting 
anchor near the promontory under which the vessels of 
the pirates were stationed. They said, they would bind 
themselves by an oath not to put me to death or any one 
in whose favor I interceded. This proposal of theirs I 
thought it then unsafe to notice as it merited, from an ap- 
prehension that if refused they might attack us when out at 
sea and put us all to the sword. I promised to do as they 
wished, but said it was necessary for them to swear not to 
kill me nor break their engagement. They swore (it was 
in a temple all this passed) and afterwards I pressed them 
to make all the haste they could to the ships, adding, we 
shall loose sail, as soon as it is night. This behaviour on 
my part satisfied them they had to deal with a man in 
whom they could confide, and what did not diminish this 
confidence was, that in talking of the money, I begged it 
might be all paid down in good current specie, yet not till after 
they had taken possession of the vessel; on this they de- 



153 

parted, and I put to sea, and got as far from the promon- 
tory as I could. And is this, said Iarchas, what you look 
on as a great act of justice? Yes, and of liumanity too, 
said I : for I think many virtues are comprised in the cha- 
racter of a pilot, who neither destroys the lives of men nor 
wastes the substance of his employers, and who, above all, 
conquers his love for money. 



CHAP. XXV. 

AT heariug this,* the Indian with a smile says, methinks 
you make justice consist in not doing injustice, which is 
a general opinion among the Greeks. I have heard for- 
merly the Egyptians say, who used to visit this country, that 
magistrates are sent you from Rome with a naked axe 
carried before them, without knowing whether the people 
they are going to govern are good or bad : and you call 
all magistrates good, who do not make a sale of justice. 
A similar practice is adopted by slave-merchants when they 
bring a cargo of slaves from Caria, in the schedule given 
in of their several characters and dispositions, they make 
the chief merit of them to consist in their not being thieves. 
After the same most honorable manner you treat the gover- 
nors set over you ; you give both an equal share of praise, 



* The Gymnosophists, says Bayle, in general, have been an honor 
to their profession. The maxims ascribed to them by historians, and 
the discourses they are said to have held, savour of nothing that is rude 
or savage ; on the contrary, adds he, they abound with a great many 
very reasouable and sensible observations, which shew a deep medi- 
tation. One ought not to complain, continues Bayle, that they did 
not well keep up the dignity of philosophy; for their way was, never to 
go and meet any person whatever, but to put things upon this foot, even 
with regard to kings, so that if any man wanted them, he was obliged 
to give them notice of it, either by .coming to them himself or by sending 
a messenger to them. This will appear in the sequel. 



154 

and dismiss both crowned with a glory equally to be envied. 
The wisest of your poets suffer you not to be just and 
good, even had you the inclination. Minos, who sur- 
passed all his contemporaries in cruelty, and reduced to 
slavery not only the people of the isles, but those of the 
cities on the sea coast, is placed in hell by the poets to 
administer justice to the shades,* and the sceptre of justice 
is given him as a mark of honor. — But Tantalus, who was a 
benevolent man, and bestowed on his friends the blessing 
of immortality, the gift of the Gods, is deprived by the 
same poets of both meat and drink. Some bards even 
add insult to the injury which they do this divine and good 
man, by suspending a stone over his head. For my part I 
should like to see him placed in a lake of nectar, of which 
he made so generous a distribution to others. Saying this, 
he shewed them a statue which stood on the left inscribed 
with the name of Tantalus.f It was about four cubits 
high, had the appearance of a man of fifty years of age, 
and was dressed after the fashion of Argos, with only a 
slight difference in the chlamys, that was like theThessalian. 
In one hand was a phial large enough to quench a man's 
thirst. Wherein sparkled a most pure liquor, and which 
was always full without overflowing. The opinion enter- 
tained of this liquor, and of the occasion of drinking it, 



* For this, among other reasons, Plato banished poets from his com- 
mon-wealth. There is too much of this distortion of moral sentiment 
in some of the best poets, from Homer down to Milton and Boileau. 
Cicero says, Plato did well to dismiss them from the state which he 
modelled, when he inquired after the soundest policy and best ordered 
common-wealth. 

t This story of Tantalus tends to confirm the theory of Sir William 
Jones, who says, in his third discourse on the Hindus, " we now live 
among the adorers of those deities who were worshipped under dif- 
ferent names in old Greece and Italy, and among the professors of 
those philosophical tenets, which the Ionick and Attick writers illus- 
trated with all the beauties of their melodious language," 



155 

>liall be explained hereafter. Of this we may be assured, 
that Tantalus, in consequence of his not keeping silence, 
and his not refusing nectar to mankind, is slighted by the 
poets, but not by the Gods. For had he incurred their 
displeasure, he would not have been esteemed a good man 
by the Indians, who are the friends of the Gods and act 
only under the influence of heaven. 



CHAP. XXVI. 

WHILST engaged in this conversation, a noise alarmed 
them from the village, which was caused by the arrival of 
the King, who came with more than Median pomp and pa- 
rade. Iarchas, somewhat indignant, said, had it been 
Phraotes, every thing would have been as still as in the 
sacred mysteries. From this Apollonius inferred, that this 
King was not equal to Phraotes, either in part or in the 
whole of philosophy. But when he perceived no alteration 
made on the part of the sages, nor any suitable preparation 
for the King's coming about mid-day, he asked them where 
he was to reside during his stay. Here, they replied, in 
this very place. Why he comes, we shall talk over at 
night, the time most fitting for council. Is any separate 
table, said Apollonius, to be provided for him ? Yes, said 
Iarchas, one richly furnished with every thing we have. 
What, said Apollonius, do you live well? No, frugally, 
for though allowed many things, we are content with few. 
However, the King requires many things, for so is his 
pleasures, at the same time he eats of nothing having life, 
the same being held unlawful. Consequently, his table will 
be supplied with such varieties only as are used in second 
courses, namely, vegetables of different kinds, and fruits 
which India supplies at this season, and does in every change 
of climate. But behold — he comes. 



1j6 



CHAP. XXVII. 

THE King arrived, accompanied by his brother and son, 
sparkling in gold and precious stones. Iarchas would not 
suffer Apollonius to rise on the King's coming in, as it was 
not the custom of the country. Damis tells us, he was 
not present at this interview, from being obliged that day 
to go to the neighbouring village, but he says, he has 
truly related what he heard from Apollonius. When the 
King made his entrance, he held out his hand to each of the 
sages, who remained seated ; he approached like a suppliant 
with some humble request, to which, when they gave assent, 
promising to do what he wished, he seemed to be as much 
pleased with it as if it came from an oracle. The king's 
brother, and son (who by the by was a very handsome 
youth) were considered by the sages in no other light than 
if they had been domestics belonging to the royal suite. 
After this the Indian rose and made a speech, in which the 
King was ordered to take some refreshment, to which he 
most graciously assented. Whereupon, four Pythian 
tripods (such as are used by the priests of Apollo at 
Delphi) came forward, like those described in Homer.* 



* That day no common task his labour claimed : 
Full twenty tripods for his hall he fram'd. 
That plac'd on living wheels of massy gold, 
(Wondrous to tell) instinct with spirit, roll'd 
From place to place, around the blest abodes 
Self-mov'd, obedient to the beck of Gods. 

Homer, Pope, b. 18. 
Tillemont is puzzled to ascertain whether the wondrous things men- 
tioned in the text were the effects of magic or downright lies ; I am 
not puzzled in the least about them, as I consider them all of the latter 
description. 

This feast, Bishop Parker considers as the most pleasant scene of 
the whole comedy, in which there was no need of any attendants ; but 

the 



Ij7 

Then advanced cup-bearers of black brass, like the 
Ganymedes and Pelopses of the G reeks. The earth strewed 
herbs under them much softer than our beds. Bread and 
fruits, and the vegetables of the season, together with the 
dainties used at second courses, came of themselves, each 
in order, better dressed than what they could be by our 
cooks. Of the tripods two of them handed about wine, and 
of the remaining two, one handed about warm water, and 
the other cold. The gems which came to us from the 
Indies are so small, that the Greeks set them in necklaces 
and rings, but with the Indians, cups and goblets are made 
of them large enough to drink out of, and satisfy the thirst 
of four men in the heat of summer. The cupbearers of 
brass mixed the wine and water for the company, in equal 
proportions, which they presented to every man in small 
cups, as is customary at our feasts. The guests sat down 
as at a public entertainment, without shewing any mark of 
respect to the King, which among the Greeks and Romans 
is considered of so much importance. The truth is, each 
guest sat down as chance directed. 



CHAP. XXVIII. 

DURING the repast, Iarchas said, I drink to you, O 
King ! and beg leave to present to you a Greek whose 



the chairs and the stools, the pots and the cups, the dishes and the 
plates, understood every one their own offices; and so served in the 
entertainment themselves, and ran hither and thither as the guests 
commanded, or their attendance required. 

A book interspersed with such anecdotes, says Dr. Douglass, Bishop 
of Salisbury, may perhaps gaiu credit with one who can digest the 
spurious travels of Sir John Mandeville, or the wonders of Lilliput and 
Brobdignac : but with every serious person it carries its own confuta- 
tion along with it. " Magna Homeri mendacia, majoribus mendaciis 
corrigit," says Ludovicus Vives. 



158 

name is Apollonius, and who sits on the seat immediately 
below you. Saying this, he made known by a sign that he 
was a good and divine man. I am told, said the King, 
that he and his companions in the next village are the par- 
ticular friends of Phraotes. They are, replied Iarchas, 
and were most hospitably entertained by him. To what 
studies, said the King, is he addicted ? To the same as 
Phraotes. I think, said the King, his pursuing those 
studies which has prevented Phraotes's acting like a man, 
is not much to his advantage. 1 request, O King ! says 
Iarchas, that you speak more modestly of philosophy and 
Phraotes. Whilst you were young we made allowances 
for your youth, but now that you are old, you should 
spare such foolish, rash expressions. Then Apollonius, by 
the help of an interpreter said, what great advantage O 
King ! have you derived from not having studied philo- 
sophy ? only that j said the King, of possessing every virtue, 
and of being one and the same with the sun. Here 
Apollonius, willing to check his pride, said, if you had 
studied philosophy you would never have entertained such 
sentiments. Well then, said the King, you who are so 
good a philosopher, what do you think of yourself? That I 
am good only whilst I apply myself to philosophy. Here- 
upon the King with hands uplifted to heaven cried out — 
By the sun I swear you are come to us full of Phraotes. 
This expression Apollonius considering of unexpected 
advantage, said, I have not travelled in vain, if I am full 
of Phraotes ; and if ever you meet him you will say that 
he is full of me. He expressed a desire of writing to you 
in my behalf, but when he told me that you were a 
good man, I declined giving him the trouble of a letter, 
when I recollected that no one had written to him in 
my favor. 



159 



CHAP. XXIX. 

HERE ended the King's first indiscretion, for when he 
heard he was praised by Phraotes, he said in a low tone 
of voice without any suspicion, be welcome, most excellent 
stranger. To which Apollonius said, and be you welcome, 
O King ! for it is only now we can say you are arrived. 
The King continued, Who brought you here? These 
Gods, or these sages, returned Apollonius. Then the 
King turning to Apollonius, said, do the Greeks say much 
of me? As much, replied Apollonius, as you say of 
them. For my part, said the King, I do not think there 
is any action of theirs which is worth speaking of. Well, 
said Apollonius, I will tell them this, that they may 
honor you with a crown at the next Olympic Games. 



CHAP. XXX. 

ON this Apollonius turning to Iarchas, said, let us leave 
this unwise man to his folly. But tell me why you think 
the King's brother and son not deserving of a place at 
the common table ? and why no particular mark of respect 
is paid them? Becaus% said Iarchas, it is supposed 
they may one day mount the throne, and therefore they 
are neglected now, that by it they may be taught not to 
neglect others in their turn. Apollonius perceiving that 
the number of the wise men exceeded not eighteen, asked 
Iarchas if any thing was signified by that number, as it 
was not one of the quadrats, nor any of those numbers to 
which dignity and reverence were paid, like ten, twelve, 
sixteen, &c. Iarchas replied, we are not the slaves of 
particular numbers, nor is any one more esteemed than 
another ; because all preference amongst us arises from 



160 

wisdom and virtue. I have heard that my grandfather was 
elected a member of the college of the sages, when they 
amounted to eighty-seven, and he was then the youngest of 
them. He outlived them all, being one hundred and 
thirty years old : no man in India had a more philosophical 
genius, or was in other respects more illustrious. To some 
Egyptians who congratulated him on being left alone at 
the head of the college for four years, he said, by way of 
exhortation, do not reproach the Indians for the number of 
their wise men being so few. But for ourselves, Apollonius, 
who have heard from the Egyptians of the custom of the 
Eleans, and of the ten Hellanodici who preside at the 
Olympic Games, we do not approve of the law which is 
enacted for the election of these men. For the election 
is left to chance, which is blind, foresees nothing, and 
may fall upon the most unfit candidate. Even on the 
supposition of the lot falling on the most deserving, the 
original error would not be less. For as there is no de- 
parting from the number ten, some worthy men must lose 
their election, when the number of fit candidates exceeds 
ten : and when the number falls short, undeserving men 
will obtain the honor. Hence the Eleans would act with 
more consistency and propriety if they preserved their 
virtue, and not their number. 

• 
CHAP. XXXI. 

WHILST they were discoursing in this manner, the King 
endeavoured to interrupt them by some ill-timed injudici- 
ous observations. He asked what was the subject of their 
discourse ? We were talking of matters of great conse- 
quence, said Apollonius, and what are highly esteemed 
*mong the Greeks ; but what I believe are of little esti- 
mation in your eyes, considering the great disregard you 
entertain for that people. That is true, said the King, but 



16) 

}*et I wish to learn, for methinks you were talking of the 
Athenians who were formerly the slaves of Xerxes. No, 
said Apollonius, we were speaking of matters of a differ- 
ent nature, but since you have mentioned the Athenians in 
terms as unfounded as inconsiderate, will you tell me O 
King ! whether you have any slaves ? Yes, twenty thou- 
sand, of whom not one is bought, being all born within 
my own dominions. Then, Apollonius, by his interpreter 
asked,* whether it was usual for him to fly from his slaves, 
or for his slaves to fly from him ? To this remark the 
King, as if to add insult to what was said, replied, such a 
question could only proceed from the mouth of a slave. Yet 
I will answer it, and tell you, that it is the part of slaves, 
and of slaves of the lowest kind, to run away from their 
masters, and not the part of the masters, who have the 
power of punishing, and even of putting them to the torture 
for misconduct, to run away from them. You have now 
made it quite evident, O King! said Apollonius, that 
Xerxes was the slave of the Athenians, and a slave of the 
vilest description, because he ran away from them. This 
same Xerxes was defeated by the Athenians in a sea fight 
in a narrow strait, and when terrified about his shipping 
stationed in the Hellespont, fled in a single boat. And 
notwithstanding all this, returned the King, he burnt 
Athens with his own hands. For which, replied Apollo- 
nius, he suffered more than ever man did, in being 
obliged to fly from those whom he thought to have utterly 
destroyed. For my own part, when 1 consider Xerxes in 
the elevated character in which he undertook the expedi- 
tion, I cannot help thinking he might have been deservedly 
considered by some as Jupiter; but in his flight, alas, 
how changed, of all men the most miserable. For 



* The necessity Apollonius is under of making use of an inter- 
preter, is no very convincing proof of his knowing languages. 

M 



162 

had he fallen by the hands of the Greeks, who would 
have been more celebrated ? For whom would have been 
erected a more noble monument ? What military games 
and musical entertainments would not have been exhi- 
bited to his honor ? If Melicerta,* or Palemon, and 
Pelops, a stranger from Lydia, of whom the former died 
when young, and the latter not till after he reduced Arcadia 
and Argolis, and the country within the Isthmus : if I say 
they were honored by the Greeks as Gods, what would 
not have been done for Xerxes by men who naturally 
love virtue, and consider the praise bestowed on the 
vanquished, as the best reward that can accrue to the con- 
querors. 



CHAP. XXXII. 

WHILST Apollonius was speaking in this manner, the 
King burst into tears, and cried out, what a people are 
those Greek whom you talk of? And how comes it to 
pass then, said Apollonius, that you treat them with such 
contempt ? Because, stranger, said the King, the Egyp- 
tians, who call themselves alone wise and religious, abuse 
them whenever they come here, and say, that all the rites 
and ceremonies of religion, which are in esteem amongst 
the Greeks, were discovered by them : and to this they 
add, that they are destitute of all real knowledge, that 
they are insolent, factious, and turbulent ; liars also, and 
fond of the marvellous, and pitiful traders, who make a 
display of their poverty, not as a matter of honest praise, 



* The story of Ino, and ber two sons, Learchus, and Melicerta, is 
well known. OvidMetom: b. iv. Melicerta is called by the Greeks 
Palemon, though from the text a difference might be supposed, which 
says, if the Melicertas, and Palemons, &c. Some think that the Isth- 
mian games were instituted in honor of Melicerta. 



163 

but as a pretence to excuse their piratical disposition. 
But, since I now learn from you that they are the friends 
of honor and virtue, I am henceforth their friend, and 
will give them my support with a permission of being so- 
licited in their behalf in all that can do them good. As 
to the Egyptians, I will for the future regard them with 
some diffidence. Whereupon, Iarchas observed, I know, 
O King ! that your ears were poisoned by the Egyptians, 
but I declined to speak in their favor till you found such 
an advocate for them as Apollonius. But now having 
come to the knowledge of better things by means of such 
a wise man, let us drink the cup of friendship appointed 
by Tantalus, and go to rest in order that we may perform 
whatever is necessary to be done during the night. When- 
ever hereafter, O King ! you are pleased to visit us, I 
shall be happy to communicate to you all I know of the 
learning of the Greeks, which is so general over the world. 
Saying this, Iarchas began his initiation by drinking to his 
guests of that cup which was enough to satisfy all the 
world, it yielding plentifully a liquor which flowed from 
it, as if from a perennial spring. Apollonius joined in 
this cup of amity, because the custom of drinking in fel- 
lowship was found out by the Indians to strengthen the 
bonds of friendship, wherein Tantalus was constituted 
cup-bearer, as one, who above all men, cultivated friendly 
intercourse. 



CHAP. XXXIII. 

AFTER drinking to friendship, they laid themselves down 
on the couches the earth afforded. At mid-night the 
sages rose and celebrated with hymns the solar ray in the 
same elevated position they did at mid-day: and afterwards 
attended to what business the King required. Damis says, 
Apollonius did not assist at all conferences which took 

M 2 



164 

place between the King and the wise men, but thinks he 
communicated with them, as to some secrets of govern- 
ment. On the approach of day, when the sacrifices were 
finished, the King addressed Apollonius, and invited him 
to his court, that he might share with him in the rights of 
hospitality, at the same time saying, he hoped he would 
send him back to the Greeks an object of envy to them. 
Apollonius was pleased with this civility, and thanked him 
for his kindness ; but begged to decline the honor, from an 
apprehension of forming a connexion with a man so dif- 
ferent from himself; and besides, he thought his long ab- 
sence from home might make his friends suppose they 
were neglected by him. The King, however, persevered, 
and pressed his invitation even to meanness ; whereupon, 
Apollonius remarked, that a prince is always to be sus- 
pected of some sinister purpose, whenever he urges a re- 
quest in terms not befitting his rank and dignity. On this, 
Iarchas came forward, and said, you treat, O King ! with 
some disrespect our holy asylum, in endeavouring to with- 
draw from it a person in spite of himself. For as he is 
conversant with the secrets of futurity, he knows any 
further intercourse with you will not benefit him, and 
perhaps not you. When the King heard this, he returned 
to his village, as the rules of the sages did not permit him 
to remain more than one day with them. 



CHAP. XXXIV. 

THEN Iarchas desired a messenger to go and invite 
Damis to attend, a man esteemed every way fit to be ini- 
tiated in the arcana of our mysteries ; and let the messen- 
ger see that proper attention be paid to his friends who 
remain at the village. As soon as Damis arrived, the 
sages having taken their seats as usual, gave Apollonius 
permission to ask whatever questions he pleased. His first 



165 

question was, of what materials the world was made r* and 
the answer he received from them was, that it was made 
of elements. What, said Apollonius, of four elements? 
No : not of four, said 1 arenas, but of five. And what, 
said Apollonius, after water, air, earth, and fire, do you 
consider as a fifth element ? Ether, said the Indian, from 
which it is supposed the Gods have their origin : for what- 
ever things breathe air/f- are mortal, but whatever breathe 
ether, are immortal and divine. Apollonius next inquired 
what element first existed? Iarchas answered, they all 
existed together, and were coeval ; for an animal is not 
produced by parts. What, said Apollonius, am I to coiv 
sider the world as an animal ? Yes, said Iarchas,' if you 
consider it rightly : for it produces all living things. Shall 
we then say it is of the feminine sex, or of both, the 
feminine and masculine ? Of both, said Iarchas, for by 
an act of self-coalescence it performs the functions of 
both father and mother in the generation of animals,^ and 
is more ardently fond of itself, than other animals are of 



* Pythagoras first called the world Ko^o? from its order and 
beauty. 

t The air, according to Pythagoras, which is diffused about the 
earth, is unmoved and unwholesome, and all things that are in it are 
mortal ; but the air which is above is perpetually iu motion, and pure, 
and healthful, and all that are in it are immortal, and consequently 
divine. This is called — TJie free Ether, (immediately above the moon) 
ether, as being void of matter, and an eternal body ; free, as not being 
obnoxious to material disturbances. Hence it follows, that the sun, 
moon, and the rest of the stars, according to Pythagoras, are Gods — 
and as the sun is the principal object of eastern worship, we may sup- 
pose the doctrine was derived by him from the Indians. Besides, the 
sun, and the other planets, as being Gods, were considered from time 
immemorial as objects of divine worship in almost all parts of the 
world. 

t Progenitor genetrixque Deum, Dcus unus et omnis. So says 
Valerius Soranus, a Latin poet who lived in the time of Julius Caesar, 
in speaking of Jupiter. 



166 

each other, inasmuch as it unites to, and coalesces with 
itself, which coalescing self-union implies no absurdity. 
And as it is the part of an animal to move itself by the 
means of hands and feet ; and as it also possesses a mind 
capable of exciting it to action, in the same manner we 
are to suppose the parts of the world by the assistance of the 
mind, capable of accommodating itself to all its different 
productions. Even the calamities which arise from the sun's 
excessive heat, are all under the influence of the directing 
soul of the world, and never take place except when justice 
is banished from among men. But this animal is directed 
not by one hand, but many, which are not to be expressed ; 
and though from its magnitude it cannot be managed by 
means of a bridle, yet is easily ruled and made obedient. 



. CHAP. XXXV. 

I AM at a loss to know what image will best elucidate 
the above observation, which is of the highest concern, and 
far beyond my conception. Let us for instance borrow 
our image from that kind of ship which the Egyptians of 
old used to build, and navigate in our seas, for the pur- 
pose of exchanging the merchandise of Egypt for that 
of India. There is still existing with us an ancient law 
respecting the Red Sea, # which was passed by King 



* The original Erythrean, or what is erroneously called the Red 
Sea, was that part of the Indian ocean which washes Arabia and 
Persia, and extends, I believe, as far as the coast of Malabar. Hence 
it is, Herodotus says, that the Euphrates and Tigris, fall into the 
Mare Erythrajum. So that in fact the Sinus Persicus, and the Sinus 
Arabicus, the latter of which is now alone denominated the Red Sea, 
were only two branches of the original Erythrfzum Mare. The name 
Erythraeum I suppose is of Indian origin, but which the Greeks erro- 
neously 



167 

Erythras when he was master of it, saying " Let not the 
Egyptians enter our sea in a ship of war, but let them 
come with one merchant-man only." In consequence of 
this prohibition, the Egyptians most ingeniously contrived a 
vessel which answered the purposes of many used by other 
nations. In the construction of this vessel, they observed 
the exact proportions employed in ship-building, but took 
care to have its sides enlarged, and the mast elevated. 
They formed several rooms within, like as are found in 
ships of many decks. There were on board divers pilots, 
all under the controul of one respected for his age and ex- 
pedience . At the prow 7 sat many directors, and a variety 
of hands were employed of great skill and dexterity to 
manage the sails. Part of the crew were armed, for it 
was found necessary to be prepared in case of an attack 
from the Corsairs who lay to the right of the bay, and in- 
fested its entrance. Now such is the opinion should be 
formed of this world, when we consider it under the 
image of a ship. The chief, and most conspicuous place 
is to be assigned to God, the creator of the animal,* and 
the next under him to the Deities who govern in its 
several parts. And herein we give full assent to what the 
poets say, when they tell us that there are many Gods in 
heaven, and in the sea, and in the springs, and rivers, and 
likewise in the earth and under the earth. But that place 
under the earth, if such a place exists, which is described 



neously derived from gpyflpo?, which the Romans translated ruber, red. 
The prohibition in the text of King Erythras not suffering any ship of 
war to enter his sea, is curious, and I am surprised the reason of it 
has escaped the searches of the late oriental writers. 

* In the mundane system of the Indians and Pythagoreans, the Sun 
holds the highest place ; under him are Mercury and Venus, and our 
globe, and under it are its shadow, and Mars and Saturn more remote, 
which are called wnoywj or vnoyoaa. y under the earth. 



V 



168 

as dreary and gloomy,* let us separate from our idea of 
the world.f 



CHAP. XXXVI. 

WHILST the Indian was thus speaking, Damis owns he 
was so much delighted, that he could not keep silent : for he 
was not able to comprehend how an Indian, though he 
had learnt the Greek tongue, could have acquired the fa- 
cility of speaking it so fluently and correctly. He com- 
mends the cheerful dignified air with which he uttered 
doctrines like one under a divine influence. Damis adds, 
that Apollonius, who spoke with such mildness and mo- 
desty, acquired so much the manner of the Indian, that 
whenever he spoke sitting (which was his constant custom) 
he greatly resembled Iarchas. 



CHAP. XXXVII. 

THE rest of the Sages expressed their approbation of 
what was said in the same language. Whereupon Apol- 
louius asked which was greater, the earth or the sea? 
To this Iarchas said, if we compare the earth with the 



* Let us separate what is dark, and dreary, and horrid, from that 
world called xoo-^s?, which is the source of order, and beauty, and 
delight. 

t In the above description, Cudworth admits we have a true repre- 
sentation of the old paganic theology, which both Indians, and 
Egyptians, and European poets (Greek and Latin) all agree in : that 
there is one supreme God the maker of the universe, and under him 
many inferior generated Gods, or understanding beings (superior to 
man) appointed to govern and preside over the several parts thereof, 
who were also to be religiously honored and worshipped by men. 



sea, we must allow the former to be the greater, as it con- 
tains the sea. But if we take into consideration every ex- 
isting fluid, we shall say the earth is the lesser body, inas- 
much as it is sustained by water.* 



CHAP. XXXVIII. 

IN the midst of this conversation a messenger arrived, in- 
troducing to the sages some Indians who implored their 
assistance. Among them was a woman who came to inter- 
cede for her son, a youth about sixteen years of age, who 
for the last two years was possessed of a lying wicked 
demon. One of the sages asked on what grounds she 
said this ? Because, replied she, a demon has fallen in 
love with him for his beauty, who suffers him not to enjoy 
any freedom of will, nor to go to school, nor shoot his 
bow, nor even stay at home, but drags him abroad into 
lonely and desert places. Besides, said she, he no longer 
retains his natural voice, but speaks like a man, and sees 
objects with eyes very different from his own. This is the 
cause why I weep and tear my bosom, and endeavour all 
I can to have him restored to his right mind, but alas ! he 
knows me not. At the same time I must tell you that, 
when once I had made up my mind to come to you, which 
is now more than a year, the demon confessed by the 
mouth of my boy, as his interpreter, who he was. He 
owned himself to be the ghost of a man who had fallen 
long ago in battle, and who had been extremely fond of 



* This is agreeable to holy scripture, which says, " To him that 
stretched out the earth above the waters" — il and the earth standing 
out of the water, and in the water." 

That water was the primitive element, and first work of the crea- 
tive power, is the uniform opinion of the Indian philosophers. 

Sir W. Jones. 



170- 

his wife : but, that when he understood she had violated 
his marriage bed, and wedded another man only three 
days after his death ; his love for the sex turned to hatred, 
and all his affections passed to this boy. At last the de- 
mon promised, on the conditions of my making no com- 
plaint to you, that he would do my son much good. I 
suffered myself to be tempted by his promises ; but he has 
now long deceived me, and has got possession of my house, 
which he keeps without one sentiment of truth or honor. 
Here one of the sages asked if the boy was at hand ? 
His mother said he was not, for the demon did all he 
could to prevent his coming : for precipices and antres 
dire, and death itself, were held out by way of threats, 
should I bring this matter before your tribunal. Take 
courage, woman, said the wise man, for as soon as he 
has read this letter, he will harm you not, and with these 
words, he took one from his bosom, # and gave it to the 
woman, which was written to the spectre, containing many 
things, enough not only to alarm, but terrify him.f 



CHAP. XXXIX. 

WHEN the woman was gone, a lame man approached, 
who was about thirty years of age, who had been a 
desperate hunter of lions. In an encounter with one of 
these animals, his hip-bone was dislocated, by which he 
had one foot shorter than the other. The moment the 



* This is another proof, added to the one mentioned in the 17th 
chapter, that the Brachmans did not go naked ; the letter in his bosom 
must have been concealed under some covering. 

t But whether the demon w#s expelled from the youth, we do 
not find that either Apollohiu^ or Damis ever inquired ; and wise 
they were in so doing, for thqv would only have had their labour for 
their pains. 



171 

sage touched the part affected with his hand, the man re- 
covered the use of his limb, and walked upright. Ano- 
ther man who was blind, departed after his sight was 
restored to him. Another who had lost the use of his 
hand went away as soon as it was cured. A woman who 
had had seven difficult labors, was thus cured at the inter- 
cession of her husband. He was ordered when his wife 
was in the act of labor to enter the room with a live hare 
concealed in his bosom,* and to go round the bed where 
she lay ; and at the very instant of her being delivered, to 
let go the hare ; for he was told if the hare was not let 
loose at the moment of birth, the matrix would come 
away with the child.f 



CHAP. XL. 

TO a father w ho came complaining of his children all dying 
as soon as they tasted wine, Iarchas said, it is better they 
died, for had they not, they must all have been mad, con- 
sidering the warmth of their natural constitutions. There- 



* Though every country has certain superstitions peculiar to itself, 
it is something extraordinary that there should be such a similarity in 
the follies of two such distant ones, as appears from what is mentioned 
in the text, compared with the following instances: — 

The womb or matrix of a hare pulverised, and ab nt an ounce of it 
drank in a glass of tent, causes conception. — The eyes drawn entire 
out of the head of a hare taken in March, ar.d dried with pepper, one 
of these being so tied to the belly, that the sight of the eye may touch 
it, this will foci itate labor in women. 

See Kcogfis Zoolngia Medicintdes Hibernica, Dublin, 1739. 

t And if the child had had a hare-lip when it came into the world, 
who would have been surprised? 

Ces extravagances, says Du Pin, et quantite dautrcs que Philostrate 
rapporte sur lafoi de Dami$ } font asses connoitre ce qu' on doit penser de cet 
outrage. 



172 

fore I think your children should so abstain from wine, 
as not to be even affected by the desire of it. And if 
hereafter you happen to have a child, (by the way I see 
you have had one within the last week) you should first 
observe where the owl builds her nest, then rob it of its 
eggs, and make your child eat of them after being gently 
boiled. For if he eats of them before he tastes wine, 
he will loath that liquor, and become the most moderate 
of men, possessed only of that temperature of constitu- 
tion which is natural to him. Apollonius and Damis, full 
of all they saw and heard, and amazed at their superior 
knowledge,* asked many questions, and were asked many 
in their turns.f 



CHAP. XLI. 

IN all conferences which Were merely dialectical, Apol- 
lonius and Damis both assisted. But Damis says, Apollo- 
nius was only admitted by Iarchas to the discussion of the 
mysteries of astrology, and divination, and futurity, and 
sacrifices, and evocations, in which the Gods take pleasure. 
From what he learnt among them, he composed four 
books on astrology, of which Meragenes has made men- 
tion. He wrote also a treatise on sacrifices, in which the 
most proper way of sacrificing to each of the Gods was 
set down. For my part I think the science of astrology, 
and the art of divination, are above human capacity, and 
I am doubtful whether they are possessed by any one. 
His treatise on sacrifices I have met with in many temples, 
cities, and houses of the learned. But who can explain 



* After reading the above, I think we might say with Dromio, in the 
Comedy of Errors (a name most suitable to the subject) " We talk with 
goblins, owls, and elvish sprights." 

t Displayed in this learned dissertation on owls eggs. 



J 73 

with becoming eloquence and truth a work composed by 
such a man.* Damis adds, that Iarchas gave Apollonius 
seven rings, each bearing the name of one of the seven 
stars, and that he wore them alternately according to the 
particular name of the day.-j- 



CHAP. XLII. 

THE discourse between Iarchas and Apollonius some- 
times fell upon foreknowledge, a subject to which, as the 
laUer was greatly addicted, gave often rise to much con- 
versation. Iarchas praised him for it, and said, they who 
take pleasure in the art of divination, O most excellent 
Apollonius, become by it divine and useful to mankind. 
For he who possesses within himself the power of fore- 
knowledge, and is capable by it of instructing the ignorant, 
in what can only be acquired by having recourse to the 
oracle itself, I consider him most happy, and equal to the 



* On this occasion Du Pin cries out, " Voila la fruit du grand et 
penible voyage D'Apollone : Voila toute la science qu' il rapporta de 
ce pais ; c'est k dire, qu' il en revint plus idolatre, plus superstitieux, 
plus extravagant qu' il n' y etoit alle." 

t The learned Asiatics, in their mysterious rites, allotted to the seven 
terrestrial metals the same names by which they denominated the seven 
stars or planets, and the same hieroglyphic characters at this day 
equally distinguish both — in the passage before us — the ring of gold, a 
proper emblem of the sun, was worn on Sunday — the ring of silver, 
an emblem of the moon, on Monday — the ring of iron on Tuesday — ■ 
the ring of quicksilver on Wednesday — the ring of tin on Thursday — 
that of brass on Friday — and lastly, that of lead on Saturday.— Dies So- 
ils, dies Lunae, dies Martis, dies Mercurii, dies Jovis, dies Veneris— dies 
Saturni. — Spence in his Polymetis, speaks of these seven rings of 
Apollonius as a matter of great curiosity, which he used to wear, each 
one day every week, according to the particular planet that gave its 
name to the day. To this time the Arabians continue to call Apollo- 
nius Thelesmatiki, on account of his knowledge in the talismanic 
tut. 



174 

Delphic God. You know the art of divination enjoins 
all who consult the oracle to approach with pure hearts, 
otherwise to depart from it. For my part I think that 
he who wishes to learn the secrets of futurity, should keep 
himself pure, and free from all mental stain and turpitude 
whatever ; and it is my opinion that a man of this charac- 
ter will utter predictions which he himself and the tripod 
within his own breast will clearly understand : and that the 
oracles which he delivers will, on account of the purity of 
his life, be the more to be relied on. Hence it is not 
surprising you should possess this kind of knowledge, whose, 
soul is filled with such a portion of the divine ether. 



CHAP. XLTII. 

TARCHAS at this time willing to have some amusement 
with Damis, says, And have you, O Assyrian ! acquired 
no knowledge of futurity ? you, who have been so long a 
disciple of such a man ? By Jupiter, replied Damis, I 
just foreknow what is sufficient for my own use: for, from 
the time I first got acquainted with Apollonius, I thought 
him a man of great wisdom, gravity, prudence, and mo- 
deration, but when added to these virtues, I found him 
possessed of memory, great learning, and an ardent zeal 
for all knowledge, I looked on him as some demon. By 
conversing with him, J became wise from foolish ; and 
civilized from being a barbarian. By following him I be- 
came known to the Indians and you ; and by keeping 
company with Greeks, I became a Greek by his assistance. 
The knowledge you have of such momentous matters as 
futurity, &c. may be considered as equal to what proceeds 
from Delphi, Dodona, or any other given oracle. But as 
to what knowledge I possess of such things (for you see, 
poor Damis foresees and foreknows only for himself) it 



175 

may be all set down, as that of some old sorceress, utter- 
ing predictions about stray cattle, or some such other 
tilings : when he said this the sages laughed . . . 

CHAP. XLIV. 

WHEN they had done laughing, Iarchas continued the 
conversation on the subject of divination, and said, it 
had rendered great benefit to mankiud, of which the 
greatest was the knowledge of medicine. For the learn- 
ed sous of Esculapius could never have known their 
profession so well, had not Esculapius, who was the 
son of Apollo, in obedience to his father's sayings and 
predictions, prepared the medicines most proper for 
curing each disease. These remedies he shewed his 
children, and taught his scholars what simples were 
best to be applied to every species of ulcers, whether 
new . or old. But the exact proportions of medical po- 
tions, by which dropsies are removed, fluxes of blood 
stopped, consumptions and other internal complaints 
abated, together with the fittest medicines to be applied 
in case of persons poisoned, and the mode of converting 
the poisons themselves to the cure of diseases, who, I 
say, will deprive divination of such discoveries ? for I do 
not think that mortals without some knowledge of futurity 
would have had courage enough to use the most danger- 
ous poisons in the curing of distempers. 



CHAP. XLV. 

THE conversations which they had concerning the wild 
beasts, and fountains, and the men, said by the Greeks to 
be found in India, as being referred to by Damis in his 
epistles, I think should not be omitted in this place. The 
natural conclusion from such accounts is, that full credit 



176 

is neither to be given to, nor withheld from them. Da- 
mis says, Apollonius asked if they had among them the 
martichora ?* What, said Iarchas, have you heard of that 
animal ? for if you have, it is probable you have heard 
something extraordinary of its figure. Great and wonder- 
ful are the things I have heard of it, replied Apollonius. It 
is of the number of quadrupeds, has a head like a man's, is 
as large as a lion, with a tail from which bristles grow, of 
the length of a cubit, all as sharp as prickles, which it 
shoots forth like so many arrows against its pursuers.-j- 
Apollonius then inquired about the golden water,J men- 
tioned as flowing from certain springs,§ of a stone which 
possesses the qualities of the magnet, of the men who 
live under ground,|| of the pygmies,** and also of the 
sciapodes.ff Upon this, Iarchas said, it is useless to 
speak to you, Apollonius, of the animals, or plants, or 
fountains, which you have seen in your journey hither, for 
it is your business to mention them to others': but as to 
the arrow-shooting wild beast.ffl* and the fountain of gol- 



* For a particular description of the martichora or mantichora, as 
Pliny calls it, see his Nat. History, b. viii. c. 21. — where, I believe, it 
is only to be found. — Tyson says it is to be met with among the won- 
derful productions of Ctesias. 

t This corresponds with the fabulous accounts given of the porcu- 
pine. Quill-darting porcupine, is the epithet of Pope. 

% There is an account in Ctesias of the golden water. 

§ See next chapter. 

|| Olearius supposes them to be the Cynocephali of Ctesias, who 
have no houses, but dwell in caves. Buffon says they are a species of 
apes, having long muzzles like dogs. 

** Pigmies hereafter. 

tt Sciapodes are so called, says Pliny, because in the scorching heat 
of summer they lie on their backs, and defend themselves from the 
sun's rays by the shadow made with their feet. 

$$t The arrow-shooting wild beast must be the quill-darting porcu- 
pine, and the golden water must have given rise to the story of the 
yellow golden water mentioned in the Arabian Nights' Entertainment, 

of 



177 

den water, I have never even heard of them in this 
country. 

CHAP. XLVI. 

WE have no reason to doubt the existence of the stone 
which attracts others,* for you may see it and admire its 
virtues. The largest is about the size of a mau's thumb- 
nail, and is generated in the cavities of the earth about 
four paces below the surface. It possesses the hidden 
virtue of causing the ground to swell, and sometimes to 
open in the place where it is produced. No one is per- 
mitted to search for it, and the reason is, because it is ac- 
quired only by art. By the performance of certain rites, 
and utterance of certain words, the pantarba (the name of 
the stone) is found. By night it gives a light like that of 
fire, which is of a radiant shining quality, but when seen 
by day, it dazzles the eyes with a thousand glittering rays. 
This light contains within it a subtile spirit of ineffable 
power, which attracts whatever is near it : but why do I 
say near it ? Cast as many stones as you please into the 
sea, or any running stream, I don't mean all together; 
but scattered as chance directs, this gem, or stone, im- 
mersed where they lie, will draw them all to itself by the 



of which a single pot being brought in a proper vessel, and poured into 
a large bason made for it in any garden, it fills immediately, and forms 
a fountain, which continually plays, and yet never overflows the ba- 
son. The yellotc water was one of the three things which the i rincess 
Parizade was so desirous to learn from the old devotee — the oUier two 
were the talking bird, and the singing tree. 

• No stone better corresponds, I think, with the oue mentioned in 
the text, than that of the magnet, the virtues of which were not 
wholly unknown to the ancients, though the account given of it by our 
author, is more the child of poetry than history. 

N 



178 

influence of this spirit, and make them form into a cluster 
like a swarm of bees. When Iarchas said this, he shewed 
the stone, and what it could do. 

CHAP. XLVII. % 

IARCHAS proceeded, and told them of the pygmies* 
dwelling under the earth on the other side of the Ganges, 
and of their living in the way generally ascribed to them ; 
but as to what is said by Scylaxf in his history of the 
Sciapodes and the Macrocephali ;J I believe they neither 
exist in India, nor any other place in the world. 



CHAP. XLVIII. 

THE gold said to be dug out of the earth by the griffons,^ 
is found in stones, which are sprinkled all over with drops 
of gold, that shine like so many sparks of fire, these 



* A race of little men, says Aristotle, mounted on small horses, and 
who live in caves. — Pliny places the country of the Pygmies among 
the remotest mountains of India beyond the fountains of the Ganges. — 
His story of the whole nation descending in the spring, and consuming 
the eggs and young of the cranes, contains important facts, though 
obscured by exaggeration, and concealed under the veil of allegory. — 
It is a well-known fact that the apes, which rove in large bodies in 
Africa and India, wage continual war with the cranes; on which are 
founded all the stories of the one nation warring with the other. 

Bcffon. 

t Scylax, a geographer and mathematician in the age of Darius, son 
of Hystaspes, about 550 years before Christ. He was commissioned 
by Darius to make discoveries in the east, and after a journey of 30 
months, he visited Egypt. — The latest edition of the Periplus of Scylax 
is that of Grouovius — 4to. Lempkiere. 

$ There is no author except Philostratus, who speaks of a people 
called Macrocephali — long-headed, as living in India, though some of 
the race are to be found in all parts of the world. 

§ Herodotus speaks of the griffons, as guardians of the gold. 



I 



179 

stones they break in pieces with their beaks. The griffons 
found in India are held sacred to the sun, who is alwavs 
painted in a chariot drawn by four of them.* These ani- 
mals are as strong aud large as lions, against whom they 
carry on successful war by the assistance of their wings ; 
and it is added, they sometimes overcome the elephant and 
dragon in battle. They never rise to a great height in fly- 
ing, being not able to surpass in velocity the most sluggish 
bird. They have not such feathers as other birds, but the 
pinions of their wings are fastened by a red membrane, 
which enables them to fly a little, wheel about, and fight 
off the ground. The tiger is the only animal not to be 
conquered by them, and the reason is, that his swiftness 
is equal to that of the winds. 



CHAP. XLIX. 

THE bird named the phenix, visits Egypt every five hun- 
dred years,f during which time it is said to fly all over In- 
dia. There is never but one ; and it emits rays of the 
color of gold, and resembles in size and shape the eagle. 
It sits on its nest, which it makes for itself with spices 
near the fountains of the Nile. What the Egyptians say 
of its coming into their country, is said also by the Indians, 
with this added, that w hilst it is burning itself in its nest, 



* Not always — for in the second book he is represented at Taxila as 
drawn by four horses. Sir William Jones says, the Indian poets and 
painters describe his car as drawn by seven green horses. 

t The story of the phenix, even in the time of Tacitus, was interest- 
ing, and at this day curiosity is gratified with the particulars of so 
celebrated a fiction. 

I suppose it is of Indian origin, under which is veiled some curious 
allegory. 

N 2 



ISO 



it sings a farewel dirge. They who have paid.most atten- 
tion to swans,* say as much of them. 



CHAP. L. 

SUCH were the conversations Apollonius held with the 
sages, in whose company he spent four months, during 
which he acquired whatever knowledge they had fit for 
public, or private use. When he determined on going 
away, they advised him to dismiss his guide and camels 
with a civil letter to Phraotes. Afterwards they supplied 
him with another guide, and other camels, and accompa- 
nied him part of the way, congratulating both him and 
themselves on the pleasure they had in each other's com- 
pany. When taking leave of him, they assured him he 
would be considered as a God, not only after his death, 
but during his life. They then returned to their college, 
after casting many looks behind, and expressing much sor- 
row at his departure. Apollonius, meanwhile, proceeded 
on his journey ,f with the Ganges on his right, and the 



* The swan, says Buffon, chants not its approaching end ; but in 
speaking of the last flight, the expiring effort of a fine genius, we shall 
ever, with tender melancholy recal the classical and pathetic expres- 
sion, " it is the song of the swart." — Cicero in his account of the death 
of Crassus the orator, alludes to the dying notes of the swan in these 
words, " ilia tamquam cycnea fuit divini hominis vox & oratio ; quam 
quasi exspectantes, post ejus interitum, veniebamus in curiam, ut 
vestigium illud ipsum, in quo ille postremum institisset, contucremur." 
Then after mentioning the disorder, of which he died, how just and 
affecting are his reflections, " O fallacem hominum spem, fragilemque 
fortunam, inanes nostras contentiones ; quae in medio spatio saepe 
franguntur & corruunt, aut ante in ipso cursu abruuntur quam por- 
tum conspicere potuerunt." 

t His journey must have been to the south — and in that case he must 
have had the Ganges to the left, and the Hyphasis to the right. 



181 

Hyphasis on his left ; and in the space of ten days from 
leaving the holy mount, arrived at the sea. — In descending 
towards it, they saw on their way numbers of ostritches 
and wild oxen, and asses, and lions, and pards, and 
tigers, and a kind of apes not found among the pepper- 
trees, for what they saw here were black, with shaggy 
hair shaped like dogs,* and had the appearance of little 
men. Whilst our travellers amused themselves in talking 
of what they had seen, ihey reached the sea-side, where 
were built several small emporiums, with docks annexed to 
each, wherein were laid up vessels of the transport-kind, like 
what are used in the Tyrrhenian sea. The Erythrean 
seaf appeared of a deep blue color, called so from King 
Erythras, who had the dominion of it. 

CHAP. LI. 

ON coming here, Apollonius sent back his camels to 
Iarchas with the following letter. 

" Apollonius to Iarchas and the other sages — health. 

" I came to you by land : you have given me the sea. 
In communicating to me your wisdom, you have opened 
the road to Heaven : I will remember this among the 
Greeks, I will continue to enjoy your conversation as if 
still with you, if I have not drank of the cup of Tantalus 
in vain. Farewel excellent philosophers." 

CHAP. Lit 

IN this place Apollonius took shipping, and whilst carried 
along with propitious gales, admired the mouth of the 



* Cynocephali. 

t A further proof of the Erythrean sea, extending as far as the 
mouth of the Indus. 



182 

Hyphasis and the impetuosity with which it discharged 
itself into the sea. It has been observed before, that this 
river winded its course through a country full of rocks, 
narrows, and precipices ; and afterwards emptied itself by 
one mouth into the sea, where it makes a navigation dan- 
gerous to all vessels that come too near the land.* 



CHAP. LIII. 

OUR travellers say they saw the mouths of the Indus, 
where Patala is situate, f a town encompassed by its wa- 
ters. This is the place where the fleet of Alexander 
moored under the command of Nearchus, a man not 
unskilled in naval tactics. Damis has confirmed every 
thing said by OrthagorasJ concerning the Erythrean sea, 
first, that the constellation of the bear^ is not seen in it, 
secondly, that the sailors cast no shadow at mid-day, and 
thirdly and lastly, that the stars visible in it, observe an 
order different from what they do in other skies : and the truth 
of these celestial phenomena were not doubted byany one.|| 



* Here is a great geographical error. — The Hyphasis^ which formed 
the boundary of Alexander's conquests, falls into the Indus on the 
east side at several hundred miles from the sea. — Therefore what Phi- 
lostratus calls the mouth of the Hyphasis, was that of the Indus. 

t Patala, a town which gives the name of Patalene to an island 
formed by the two branches of the Indus, through which it discharges 
itself into the sea. Pliny places this island within the torrid zone. 

$ Orthagoras, a writer frequently mentioned by iElian in his history 
of animals — he wrote a treatise on India in nine books, and is supposed 
to have been a companion with Onesicritus in his voyages. 

$ Here is an astronomical error, which might have arisen from Phi- 
lostratus thinking with Pliny, that Patala was in the torrid zone, but 
the fact is, it is not even within the tropic — therefore the bear must 
have been visible. 

|| This is what Arrian says in his Indian history as illustrative of the 
ebservation in the text. — Nearchus assures us, that during his voyage 

along 






183 

A small island called Byblos,* was noticed by them, ] 
where they saw muscles, and oysters, and a variety of 
other shell-fish growing upon the rocks, ten times larger •. 
than what are found in the Grecian seas. Here they ' 
found the stone margarita in a white shell, which, it is 
said, fills up the space of the heart in an oyster. 

CHAP. LIV. 

LEAVING the Indus, they touched at Pagala,f a town 
in the country of the Oritae, where the very stones and 
sand are a composition of brass, in which the rivers also 
abound. It is believed the soil contains gold, on account 
of the excellency of the brass. 

CHAP. LV. 

THEY next came to the country of the Icthyophagi,J 
the capital of which is Stobera,§ whose inhabitants were 
dressed in the skins of large fishes, of which their cattle 



the coast of India, the shadows fall not the same way as in other parts, 
for when they sailed far into the ocean towards the south, there the 
shadows nigh noon-day declined southward ; and when the sun was 
upon the meridian, they had no shadows at all, the stars also which 
were used to appear high above the horizon, either appeared not at 
all, or came but just in sight, and he observed many of them there to 
rise and set, which always before had been visible. 

* Byblo8— I am persuaded with Olearius, that the genuine reading 
is Bibacta, from what Arrian says of it.— It is an island of Gedrosia, 
on which Nearchus landed his men, who whilst they were there, caught 
oysters of a strange and surprising bigness. 

t Pagala, an island on the coast of the Oritae. Arrian. 

t The account of the Icthyophagi is much the same as that given by 
Arrian in his Indian history. — Their cattle, he says, have much the 
same diet as their masters — that is — fish dried, reduced to powder, 
and mixed with the flower of wheat. 

$ Stobera, the capital, no where to be found. 



184 

tasted, from being fed in a very singular way. The shep- 
herds here fed them with fish, as they do in Caria with 
figs.* The Indians called Carmanians are polished, and 
inhabit a sea-coast which abounds with fish, that are not 
taken to be preserved, nor are they cured with salt, as is 
practised on the shores of the Pontus : for of what they 
take, they sell some, and throw the rest i nto the sea 
whilst alive. 



CHAP. LVI. 

OUR travellers next put into Balara,f a place of some 
trade, abounding in myrtles and palm trees, in which they 
say they found the laurel, and plenty of fresh water. The 
country was well laid out in orchards, and flower-gardens, 
and had safe harbours. Opposite to it lay the sacred 
Island called Selera,f inhabited by Nereis, a dreadful 
Goddess, who carried off every mariner she could seize 
on, and would suffer no ship to cast anchor near it. 



CHAP. LVII. 

THE account given of another species of the margarita 
merits attention, as appearing of some importance in the 
eyes of Apollonius, its formation being curious, and the 
most wonderful of all marine productions. On the side 



* Caria abounds so much with figs, that when dried, they are put to 
a great variety of uses. 

t Balara, supposed to be Badis, a well cultivated place of Car- 
mania, where they found plenty of fruit tree?, and vines, and corn, 

Arrian. 

X Selera must be the Nasala of Arrian, from the description which he 
gives of it — he says it is sacred to the sun, and that he heard one of the 
Nereids had made it the place of her residence, &c. 



185 

of the island situate towards the main, is an immense gulf, 
which produces an oyster of a white shell, abounding in 
fat : for here the island is without any rocks. When the 
sea is calm, which however the inhabitants can cause 
themselves by the infusion of a little oil,* an oyster- 
diver furnished after the manner of a gatherer of sponge, 
with an iron plinth, and an alabaster box of ointment, 
takes his post near an oyster bed, and uses his oint- 
ment for a bait. The moment the oyster opens his 
mouth he applies the oil, by which the oyster becomes 
as if intoxicated, he then pricks it with a needle ; this 
causes it to emit a kind of liquid matter, which is imme- 
diately caught by the diver in his plinth, that is hol- 
lowed into a variety of shapes. It soon grows hard as a 



* Or with fine films, suspended o'er the deep, 
Of oil effusive, lull the waves to sleep. 

Darwin's Botanic Garden. 

When oil is diffused on the surface of waters, gentle hreezes cannot 
raise waves upon it ; for a small quantity of oil will cover much water, 
and the wind blowing on this, carries it gradually forwards ; and there 
being no friction between the two surfaces, the water is not affected. 
On which account oil has no effect in stilling the agitation of the water 
after the wind ceases, as was found by the experiments of Dr. Frank- 
lin. — This circumstance lately brought into notice by Dr. Franklin, 
had been mentioned by Pliny, and is said to be in use by divers for 
pearls, who in windy weather take down with them a little oil in their 
mouths, which they occasionally give out when the inequality of the 
supernatant waves prevents them from seeing sufficiently distinctly for 
their purpose. Darwin's Notes. 

Plutarch, in his essay concerning the first principle of cold, says, 
" oil poured upon the waves, will cause calmness on the sea — not be- 
cause it is so slippery that the winds can have no power over it, as 
Aristotle thought, but because the waves will fall and sink, when smit- 
ten by any moist body. And this also, he adds, is peculiar to oil, that 
it shines, and shews itself transparent at the bottom of the water, 
while the watry humors are dispersed by the air." Not having the 
original, I cannot say whether this translation is as accurate as it 
should be. Plutarch's Morals, bij several hands, Lond. 1704. 



186 

stone, and assumes the appearance of the natural pearl ; 
and thus you see the celebrated pearl of the Red Sea is 
nothing but a drop of white indurated blood.* It is said 
the Arabians of the opposite shore are much addicted to 
this kind of fishing. All the sea is full of monsters, and 
whales are seen in troops. Ships navigating the sea, by 
way of precaution, carry on their sterns and prows little bells, 
which make a noise, which it is said terrifies these mon- 
sters, and prevents their coming near ships. 



CHAP. LVIII. 

ENTERING the mouth of the Euphrates, our travel- 
lers sailed up to Babylon, where they waited on Bardanes, 
whom they found such as they left him. They then went 
to Ninus, and from thence proceeded to Autioch, where 
as usual the citizens were indulging in every species of 
idle merriment, without leaving any room for those pursuits 
which are held in such estimation by the Greeks. Near 
Seleucia they took shipping,*)- and from thence sailed to 
Cyprus, where landing, they proceeded to Paphos. Here 
Apollonius saw the symbolical statue of Venus,J which he 



* The Persian Gulf abounds with the pearl fish ; and fisheries are 
established on the coasts of the several islands in it. The fish in which 
pearls are usually produced, is the East Indian oyster, as it is com- 
monly, though not very properly called. 

t Seleucia, a town of Syria, on the sea shore, generally called Pieria, 
to distinguish it from others of the same name. 

$ The statue of the goddess, says Tacitus, bears no resemblance to 
the human form.— You see a round figure, broad at the base, but 
growing fine by degrees, till like a cone, it lessens to a point. — The 
reason, whatever it be, is not explained. See a longer digression 
than what is usual with that philosophic historian, on the singular wor- 
ship paid to the Paphian Goddess. Tacitus, Hist. b. ii. c. 2, 3. 

See 



187 

greatly admired, and having instructed the priests of the 
inner court of the temple in many things, set sail for 
Ionia amidst the applause and salutations of all who es- 
teemed and valued wisdom. 



See Montfaucon on the temple of tfee Paphian Venus. Eusebms, 
after reading this third book of Philostratus observes, that there is 
nothing so fabulous or incredible in all antiquity as are the relations 
in it. 



188 



BOOK IV.— Contents. 

Apollonius visits Ephesus — Account of the Plague — 
Goes to Smyrna and Pergamus — Visit to Troy — An 
Account of his Interview with the Ghost of Achilles 
— Sails into Greece — Visits Athens, 8fc. — Passes into 
Crete and from thence to Rome — Nero Emperor — 
Tigellinus. 



CHAP. I. 

ON his coming into Ionia, he proceeded to Ephesus, 
where, the moment he appeared, the artisans left their 
trades, and followed him ; some admiring his wisdom, 
others his beauty, some his way of living, others his singu- 
lar dress, and some admired him in every respect whatever. 
Certain prophecies from the Oracle of Colophon* were 
spread abroad in his favor, announcing him as a man pos- 
sessed of some portion of Apollo's wisdom, who was truly 
wise, &c. Other prophecies of a like nature were re- 
ported from the temples of Didymef and Pergamus,f 



* Colophon, a town of Ionia in Asia, at a small distance from the 
sea. Pliny the elder mentions the Oracle of the Clarion Apollo, and 
the sacred cave, where he, who drank from the spring, was inspired 
with prophetic fury, but shortened his days. Tacitus says, Germanicus 
went there to consult the Oracle. 

t Didyme, a place near Miletus, where the Branchidae had their 
famous oracle. Branchidarum Oraculum, so called from the family of 
the priests* 

X Pergamus, a town of Mysia, on the banks of Caycus. Here jEscu- 
lapius had a temple, who was the chief deity of the country. 



189 

\Uiereiu all persons who stood in need of assistance were 
commanded by Apollo to repair to Apollonius, as such 
was his will, and that of the Fates. Embassadors came 
from several cities, who offered him the rights of hospi- 
tality, considering him not only as the guide of their lives, 
but as the fittest person to advise them in the erecting of 
altars and statues. These matters he regulated partly by 
letters and partly by word of mouth, at the same time say- 
ing he would wait on them. Smyrna sent embassadors, 
without giving any reason for it, but who urged his coming. 
When he asked them what was their business, they replied, 
" To see you> Apollonius, and be seen by you" Then 
x\pollouius told them, I will come : but, O ye Muses ! 
grant a mutual affection between us. 

CHAP. II. 

THE first discourse he had with the Ephesians was in the 
porch of the temple ; not in the Socratic manner of argu- 
ing, but in that of authority — of turning them at once from 
their present pursuits, and persuading them to spend their 
time in study and philosophy, and not in dissipation and 
cruel sports ; for all people he found immersed in shows, 
and pantomimes, and Pyrrhic dances ; and all places re- 
sounded with song, and were tilled with noise and debauch- 
ery. Though by these remonstrances he alienated from 
him the minds of the Ephesians, yet he would not wink 
at their depravity, which he tore up by the roots, and made 
odious to the people. 

CHAP. III. 

WHAT other discourse he had with the Ephesians passed 
in the groves near the Xysta. # Once when the conversa- 



* Xysta, were walks uncovered at the top, and intended for exer- 
cises and recreations during the milder part of the year. 



190 * 

tion turned on the community of goods, and the necessity 
there was of contributing to the mutual support of each 
other, a number of sparrows chanced to be sitting 4$ hand 
on a tree in deep silence, one of them suddenly rising, 
made a noise as if he had something to communicate to the 
rest, which being understood, made them all set up a 
chirping and fly away under his guidance. Apollofiius 
never stopped talking, for be knew well why the sparrows 
flew away, though he mentioned it not to the people. 
When he perceived the eyes of all were turned on the birds, 
and that some were wondering what this prodigy meant, 
he, changing the discourse, said, a boy fell, and spilt some 
corn that he was carrying in a fan ; as he gathered up 
what was on the ground in but a careless manner, he left 
many grains behind him in a narrow lane, which he parti- 
cularly mentioned : a sparrow, who saw what passed, in- 
vited his companions to the unexpected banquet. Most 
of those who heard this ran to see if what he said was 
true ; but Apollonius went on, talking to those who re- 
mained, on the community of goods, which was the sub- 
ject he began with. When the hearers who had left him 
returned shouting with joy and amazement, he said to 
them, You see now what care these sparrows take of each 
other, and w ith what satisfaction they divide their goods ; 
a doctrine which is despised by you; for if we see a man 
who relieves the wants of others, we consider him idle 
and extravagant; and all those who are fed by his bounty, 
as little better than flatterers and parasites. What else, 
then, have we to do, but shut ourselves up at home, like 
birds to be fattened for use, and indulge our appetites in 
darkness till we burst with fat. 

CHAP IV. 

SOON after the plague made its way into Ephesus, 
where it spread far and wide, Apollonius, who was ap- 



191 

prised of its coming, gave the inhabitants full warning of 
it. Sometimes whilst discoursing he would exclaim, " O 
land, remain as thou art ;" and at other times would speak 
in threatening language, " Save this people, and thou shalt 
not pass through here." To all this the Ephesians paid 
little or no attention, looking on such declarations as the 
mere effects of fear and superstition, in which they were 
the more confirmed when they saw him frequenting all the 
temples, and appearing as if he wished to avert and depre- 
cate the evil. When he saw the people behaving under 
such a calamity with their usual levity and imprudence, he 
thought he had nothing more to do with them ; and there- 
fore taking his departure, he travelled through the/ other 
regious of Ionia, redressing every where what wag Wang, 
and always speaking on those topics most usefr\.V !' 
hearers. 

CHAP. V. 

WHEN he was drawing near to Smyrna, the Ionians, who 
were then engaged in the Panionian sacrifice,* came out 
to meet him. After reading the decree wherein the Ioni- 
ans requested him to make one in their assembly, he hap- 
pened to find a name not Ionian (it was that of one Lucul- 
lus), he wrote a letter to the general council, reproaching 
them for the barbarism. Besides this name, he found 
that of one Fabricius, and several others in their decrees, 
for which he sharply rebuked them, as appears from a let- 
ter still extant. 



* Panionia, a festival celebrated by a concourse of people from all 
the cities of Ionia. It was instituted in honor of Neptune, surnamed 
Heliconius from Helice, a city of Achaia. If the bull offered in sacri- 
fice happened to bellow, it was accounted an omen of divine favor, be- 
cause that sound was supposed to be acceptable to Neptune. 



192 



CHAP. VI. 

APPEARING next day among the Ionians, he asked 
what cup was that he saw with them ? They said, it was 
the cup belonging to the general council. Then taking 
it in his hands, he drank part of what was in it, and of 
the remainder making a libation, said, O, ye guardian 
Deities of the Ionians, grant this fair colony a calm sea 
and safety from all harm; and grant that JEgeon, the 
shaker of the earth, may n >t destroy its cities. These 
words he uttered under a divine impulse, foreseeing, I sup- 
pose, the calamity which was going to befal Smyrna, Mi- 
let&s, Chios, Samos, and many others of the Ionian cities.* 



CHAP. VII. 

HE confirmed the love which the people of Smyrna had 
for letters, and encouraged it, with telling them to place 
their glory more in themselves than in the beauty of their 
city. For notwithstanding your city surpasses all cities 
under the sun in beauty, having the command of the sea, 
and possessing the fountains of the zephyrs, yet it derives 
greater honor from being adorned with men than with por- 
ticos and pictures, or even with more gold than what it 
has at present. Buildings, we all know, are fixed to the 



* Olearins has entered into a minute chronological inquiry as to the 
prediction in the text, and the earthquake which followed, and sup- 
poses Philostratus must have blundered as to the oue in question; and 
if not, that the prediction must have looked to the earthquake which 
destroyed Smyrna in the reign of Marcus Aurelian. As to myself, I 
thiuk no such earthquake happened at all, for history is totally silent as 
to one affecting all the places in the text. After the dreadful earth- 
quake in the days of Tiberius, people's fears were so awake, that they 
were prone to believe any prediction on the occasion 



193 



spot on which they are erected, and are to be seen in no 
other part of the earth ; but good men are seen every 
where, are celebrated in all parts of the world, and render 
the city which gave them birth famous on the earth. 
Cities, beautiful like Smyrna and others, might be com- 
pared to the statue of Jupiter, made by Phidias in Olym- 
pia, which remains immoveable where the artist placed it; 
but men in the act of travelling over the earth might be 
compared to Jupiter, as represented by Homer under a 
variety of forms, who is much more admirable than his 
ivory image by Phidias; for the one appears on the earth 
only in one place, but the other every where in the hea- 
vens. 

CHAP. VIII. 

APOLLONIUS, understanding that the people of 
Smyrna were given up to idle disputings, and were much 
divided in their opinions, talked with them like a philoso- 
pher on the best mode of keeping a city in safety. He 
said, a well constituted state stood in need of a discordant 
concord. As this proposition seemed hard to be believed, 
and not exactly agreeable to the fair deductions of reasoning, 
and as Apollonius perceived that the majority of his hear- 
ers did not comprehend what he said, thus proceeded: 
White and black cannot be one and the same ; what is 
sweet cannot properly blend with what is bitter ; but con- 
cord may be discordant for the sake of the many. What 
I mean is this : a state which requires good education, good 
laws, and men versed in speaking and acting, should banish 
sedition, which might lead to civil war. Let an emula- 
tion prevail for the common good ; let every man contend 
with his neighbour as to who shall give the best advice, 
who shall discharge most faithfully the duties of a magis- 
trate, or those of an ambassador, or even of an architect : 
This is the sort of discoi d that ought to prevail, and which 



/ 



194 



I think so good and advantageous to a commonwealth. 
The Lacedaemonians of old thought the simple idea of 
contributing to the general good absurd. They cultivated 
the art of war alone, and made superior excellence in mi- 
litary tactics the chief object of their lives. For my part, 
I think it right that every man in a state should act in the 
way best suited to his knowledge and capacity ; for, in my 
opinion, that state will be well governed, and will continue 
so, whose several members are rated in proportion to their 
different talents, where some gain applause for eloquence, 
some for wisdom, some for public munificence, others for 
integrity, and others for a severe and unpardoning au- 
sterity. 

CHAP. IX. 

WHILST he was thus discoursing, he saw a vessel of 
three sails leaving the harbour, and all hands at work in 
getting her under way. Apollonius, from a desire of in- 
structing those present, said, Observe, my friends, the 
crew of that ship ; see how all are employed, some getting 
into the cock-boat as rowers, others weighing the anchor 
and lashing it to the side of the vessel, others turning the 
sails to the wind, and some you see stationed at both prow 
and stern, to take care that all is right. Now, were we 
to suppose that any of the crew failed in his post, or un- 
skilfully did his duty, the ship would suffer, and feel all the 
consequence of a storm. But if a mutual emulation pre- 
vail, and the laudable desire of excelling each other, then 
will the ship go forward as if favored by the most propi- 
tious gales. The good conduct of the men on board will 
be as strong as the Asphalian Neptune.* By such dis-< 

* Asphalian, from A?<j>ax>i,- tutus— an epithet given to Neptune from 
the security he affords at sea. Macrobius, in speaking of this epithet 
of Neptune, observes, that the Gods oftentimes have appellations that 

are 



J 95 



courses as these he kept the people of Smyrna in the 
greatest harmony and good humor. 



CHAP. X. 

THE plague was now raging in Ephesus, and no remedy 
was discovered that could check its progress ; ou which 
account embassadors came to Apollonius, intreating him 
to come as their physician and undertake the cure. When 
he heard this, he said, I think the journey is not to be de- 
layed ; and no sooner had he uttered the words than he was 
at Ephesus, like Pythagoras,* who shewed himself at one 
and the same time in Thurium and Metapontum. The 
moment he arrived, he gathered all the people together, 
and said to them, " Be not dejected, for I will this day 
put a stop to the disease." Saying this, he carried the 
people of all ages to the theatre where now stands the 
statue of Averruneas. Here they beheld an old man 
begging alms, who had a most extraordinary way of wink- 
ing with his eyes ; he had a wallet in his hand, in which 
he carried crusts of bread; he was clad in rags, and had a 



are directly opposite in signification. "Ut Neptunum quern alias 
Evoo-t^flov*, id est, terrain moventem, alias Aa-^aXtova, id est, stabilien- 
tern vocant." 

* Porphyry's account in his life of Pythagoras is to this purpose: 
" That in one and the same day Pythagoras was at Metapontum in 
Italy and Tauromenum in Sicily, and conversed with his friends in both 
places." As to his curing the plague, and the manner of doing it, 
Qui tult decipi, decip>atur. 

There is no need of remarks, says Lardner, upon so silly a story. 
Justly does Eusebius say that Philostratus's accounts of Apollonius's 
miracles are inconsistent, and therefore altogether incredible. But 
miracles were to be ascribed to him, in order to make out the resem- 
blance with Pythagoras, who is mentioned by Iamblichus as a remover 
of plagues. 

o 2 



196 

most squalid appearance. As soon as Apollonius cast his 
eyes upon him, he called to the Ephesians to surround 
him, and pelt him with stones, as being the enemy of 
the Gods. The Ephesians were shocked at the idea of 
killing a stranger* in such a wretched plight (for at this 
time the poor man appeared in the act of supplication, 
and doing all he could to excite their compassion). But 
Apollonius unmoved by this, insisted that what he com- 
manded should be executed, and bid them not to let him 
escape. When some of the bystanders began to throw 
stones, he who lately appeared only capable of winking 
with his eyes, darted them flaming with fire and fury. 
Hence the Ephesians took him for a demon, and con- 
tinued pelting him with stones till they piled a heap over 
his head. Whereupon a pause ensuing, Apollonius order- 
ed the stones to be removed, that all might see the wild 
beast they had destroyed. But lo ! and behold, what they 
thought was destroyed, had made its escape ; and a dog, 
like one of the Molossian breed, as large as the fiercest 
lion, appeared when the stones were taken away, vomiting 
foam as if he was mad. The form this dog assumed was 
like that given to the statue of Averruncus.f A statue of 
Hercules was erected on the very spot where the spectre 
was stonedl 



* Mr. Charles Blount laughs at the idea of Apollonius thinking to 
stop the plague by sacrificing a poor old beggarman. 

t aworpoTrttioQ — averter of ills — was one of the epithets given to 
Apollo from the benefits he was believed to bestow on mankind. 

Talismans that serve for Averruncation, says Stanley in his account 
of the Chaldaic philosophy, are ascribed by some to Apollonius, who 
was the first among the Grecians that was famous for them ; but it is 
most probable, he adds, that he brought this art out of the east, where 
there are yet to be seen many of these figures, or talismans. The 
God Avernmcus, says Pomey, was thought to repel and prevent mis- 
fortunes. 



197 



CHAP. XI 



AFTER delivering the people of Ephesus from the 
plague,* and doing what appeared necessary in Ionia, he 
set out for Greece. When come to Pergamus, he was 
much delighted with the temple of Esculapius, and after 
suggesting to the worshippers of that God what they should 
do to obtain favorable dreams, and curing many of their 
diseases, he proceeded to the land of Ilium, and whilst 
bis mind was full of all the antiquity of the place, he 
visited the tombs of the Achaians. He had several conver- 
sations with the people on the subject of the war, and 
after offering many sacrifices, wherein not a drop of blood 
was shed, he ordered his companions to return to their 
ships, as he said he was resolved on passing the night at 
the tomb of Achilles. His companions (for he was now 
followed by the Dioscoridae,*]- and Phoedimi, and several 
others) tried all they could to divert him from his purpose, 
saying, that Achilles still shewed himself terrific, of which 
the natives were fully persuaded. To this, Apollonius 
said, but I know Achilles still loves conversation. When 
alive he was very fond of the Pylian Nestor, who always 
told him something useful. He used to call old Phenix 
his foster-father and companion, and give him other en- 
dearing appellations from his diverting him with a variety 
of pleasant stories. Even Priam, his mortal enemy, 



* The Ephesians consecrated a statue to him under the title of 
Hercules Alexicacus, in commemoration of his having delivered them 
from the plague. Lactantius. 

t Dioscoridae, and Pbaedimi— different names, I believe, of the 
Cabiri, who were also called Croybantes, Curetes, Id*i Dactyli, and 
Telchines. — The places in which their worship principally flourished, 
were Italy, Crete, Samothrace, and Troas. 

See note at the end of the second book. 



198 

lie held in a favorable light when he heard him speak ; 
and during his secession from the army, in a conference 
which he had with Ulysses, he appeared so gracious, that 
the Ithacan looked on him more as an object of love than 
fear. His shield and helmet, and its terrible nodding 
plumes, must ever continue to menace the Trojans as long 
as he remembers what he suffered from them, and the 
fraud practised at his marriage.* As to myself, I hold no 
communion with the people of Ilium, I mean to talk to 
him with more pleasure than ever his friends did of old ; 
and should he kill me, as you say, I shall have the honor 
of reposing with Memnon and Cycnus, nothing doubting 
but that Troy will bury me as she did Nestor. With 
these words, uttered partly in jest, and partly in seriousness, 
he proceeded alone to the tomb,f while his companions 
withdrew to their ship in the evening. 



CHAP. XII. 

APOLLONIUS returned next morning, whenit was light, 
and immediately after asked where Antisthenes the Parian 
was ? Antisthenes, who had been with him about seven days, 
appeared when called; to whom Apollonius said, have 
you any degree of connexion with Troy? Yes, much, 
said the Parian, for I am by family a Trojan. What, 
said Apollonius, of the family of Priam ? Of the same, 
returned he, and I think it an honor to be descended from 



* Achilles was killed by Paris in the temple, to which he had retired 
to celebrate his marriage with Polyxena. 

t People used to resort thither every year, in order to offer up sacri- 
fices in his honor, and a tradition was current, that his shade, dressed in 
armour, was accustomed to appear in a threatening posture, notwith- 
standing which, says Bayle, Apollonius attempted to speak to it. — It 
is related that miracles were wrought at his tomb. 



199 

it. Achilles then was right, said Apollonius, in desiring 
me not to have any thing to do with you. For when he 
was giving orders about a certain business relative to the 
Thessalians,* of which he seemed anxious, I asked whe- 
ther I could do any thing to oblige him ? Yes, you can, 
said he, make not the Parian youth acquainted with your 
\visdom, for the blood of Priam runs in his veins, and the 
praise of Hector is never out of his mouth Antisthenes 
when he heard this, departed unwillingly. 

CHAP. XIII. 

AS soon as it was day, and the wind fair from land, the 
ship was ready to sail. Crouds flocked to the shore, all 
anxious to embark with Apollonius, notwithstanding the 
small size of the vessel. It was now. autumn, a time of 
year when the sea is not much to be trusted. The peo- 
ple who supposed Apollonius had power over fire and 
water, and perils of every kind, all asked leave to go on 
board with him. When he found the numbers were more 
than the ship was able to contain, and happening at the 
same time to see another vessel at anchor near the tomb 
of Ajax, he cried out, let us embark in that vessel, for it 
is glorious to be saved with the multitude. After doubling 
the Trojan promontory, he bid the pilot steer for iEolia, 
situate overagainst Lesbos, and to make it by coasting 
near Methymna, for there it was Achilles told him Pala- 
medes was buried, and there his statue was to be seen of 
the heighth of one cubit, representing a man far older than 
ever Palamedes was. As soon as the vessel touched this 
land, he went ashore, and said aloud, O ye men of Greece, 



* After the oracle commanded the Greeks to celebrate the anniver- 
sary of Achilles every year, the Thessalians were the first who appoint- 
ed the wearing crowns of amaranth, and from the sequel it appears 
they were the first to discontinue it. 



200 

let us shew our respect for this great man, from whom 
comes all knowledge, and let us treat him better than the 
Achaians did, by honouring him for the sake of virtue, 
who was so unjustly put to death. Saying this, they all 
leapt on shore, and Apollonius soon discovered the tomb 
of Palamedes and his statue buried near it, on the base of 
which were inscribed these words, u To the divine Pala- 
medes' 1 — Whilst he staid here, he restored the statue to 
its place, (as I saw with my own eyes) and after raising 
round it a little chapel like those which are dedicated to 
Hecate by her worshippers, and which might be capable 
of containing ten guests, he offered up the following prayer, 
O Palamedes, forget the anger you had for the Greeks.* 
Grant them to multiply in numbers and wisdom. Accede 
this, O Palamedes ! from you comes knowledge, and by 
you the muses and I live. 



CHAP. XIV. 

HE next pat in at Lesbos, where he entered the shrine of 
that temple in which Orpheus of old used to deliver his 
oracles, which was a matter that gave great concern to 
Apollo. For when he found that he was no longer con- 
sulted at Grynium, or Claros, or even at Delphi, where 
his tripod stood, and that Orpheus (whose head,f by the 



* Palamedes was a learned man, as well as a soldier, and according 
to some, completed the alphabet of Cadmus by the addition of four 
letters, during the Trojaa war. 

t Amongst the Sabians, says Arpe, in his rise and progress of the 
Talismanic Art, it was customary with them to sacrifice in honour of 
their demon a first-born male child, whose head they cut off and season- 
ed with salt and spices for the sake of preserving it ; they then laid a 
plate of gold on the tongue, which being marked with the name of the 
demon, served them afterwards for an oracle to consult. On which, 

Arpe 



'201 



bye had just come from Thrace) was the only person con- 
sulted, he thus addressed him, and said, " Cease interfer- 
ing with my right and priviledge, for know, I have too 
long endured your songs." 



CHAP. XV. 

WHILST our travellers were navigating the Eubaean sea, 
which, as Homer says,* is dangerous, and subject to 
storms, they found it smoother, and more calm than what 
they had reason to expect, considering the season of the, 
year. This mild state of the weather gave them an op- 
portunity of talking of the islands, (of which they sailed 
by many of high renown) and of ship-building, and of na- 
val tactics in the very terms of seamen. Damis blamed 
this kind of conversation, which he frequently interrupted, 
and at last put an end to. When Apollonius found that 
Damis wished for the discussion of other subjects, he 
asked him why he interrupted the conversation, particular- 
ly as his objections did not seem to him to arise from any 
sea-sickness, with which he was affected, or from any 
other inconvenience he suffered : for you see, said he, how 
the sea is made subject to our ship, and aids it in its 
course. What is it then that gives you all this uneasiness ? 
It is, said Damis, because we are wasting our time on 
subjects old and obsolete, when others of much greater 
consequence are within our reach ? And what subject is 
that, said Apollonius, which you think preferable to all 



Arpe exclaims, Qud quid pestiferum magis, aut horrendum dictu est ? 
Ita tatnen Orphei caput, post mulierum facinus specum Lesbiam hab> 
tasse, et in terra excavata oracula fudisse, narrat Philostratus. 
* Thro' the mid-seas he bid our navy steer, 
And in Enboea shun the woes we fear. 

Odyssey, Pope, b. iii. 



202 

others ? You have conversed, Apollonius, said Damis, with 
Achilles, and have heard no doubt from him many things, of 
which we are ignorant ; why not inform us of them, and 
give us the express form and countenance of the man ; 
instead of which, the conversation is all about the passing 
islands, and ship-building. Well then, said Apollonius, 
as you desire it, I will relate every thing, provided I may 
not incur the censure of vanity or ostentation. 



CHAP. XVI. 

WHILST all were soliciting, and anxious to hear, Apol- 
lonius thus began, I obtained the honour of conversing 
with Achilles, not after the manner of Ulysses, by digging 
a trench, nor evoking his manes by the blood of lambs,* 
but I obtained it by the use of such prayers as are pre- 
scribed by the Indians in their religious ritual for the invo- 
cation of heroes. I said — " O Achilles,*)- many believe 



* Thus, solemn rites, and holy vows we paid 
To all the phantom-nations of the dead. 
Then dy'd the sheep : a purple torrent flow'd, 
And all the caverns smoak'd with streaming blood. 

Odyssey, Pope, b. xi. 

t From this story of the appearance of Achilles, says bishop Parker, 
it is obvious to any man that reads Philostratus, that his whole design 
is to follow the train of the old heathen mythology ; and that is the 
bottom of his folly, by his story to gain historical credit to the fables 
of the poets. So that it is a very true and just censure, which Ludovi- 
cus Vives has given of him, that as he had endeavoured to imitate 
Homer, so he has abundantly outlied him. For there is scarce any 
thing extraordinary reported in the whole history, in which he does not 
apparently design either to verify, or rectify some of that blind ballad- 
singer's tales ; but especially in conjuring Achilles out of his tomb, and 
discoursing with him about the old stories that were told of the Trojan 
war. And yet after all, adds the bishop, few of Apollonius's miracles 

are 



203 

you dead, I am not of their opinion, nor is Pythagoras, 
to whom I am indebted for my wisdom — I intreat you 
may shew yourself as you are, that we may know the 
truth. You will gain much from my eyes, if I can use 
them as witnesses of your existence." When I uttered 
these words, the earth around the tomb suffered a slight 
agitation : when lo ! a youth arose from it about five 
cubits high, dressed in a Thessalian mantle. His appear 
ance was not expressive of that character of pride and 
haughtiness given to it by some of the Greeks, He ap- 
peared grave, but his gravity was not unmixed .with affa- 
bility. His beauty has not, in my opinion, found one 
competent to describe it, though Homer has said much iu 
praise of it, it is ineffable, and has, I think, rather been 
diminished by those who have spoken of it, than praised 
as it deserved. At first he appeared of the size above 
mentioned. Afterwards he increased in figure till he be- 
came more than double his original stature. When arrived 
at his greatest magnitude, I supposed him about twelve 
cubits high,* and his beauty still kept pace with his en- 
creasing height. His hair seemed as if uncut, as an of- 
fering ready for the Sperchius,f to whom it was devoted 
_____ ft 

are sufficiently vouched in his own history — even the one at pre- 
sent before us, which has no other testimony but of Apollonius himself, 
who stubbornly refused to have any companion, or witness of the fact : 
beside many other absurdities in the story itself; as his rising out of the 
tomb five foot long, and then swelling to twice the length ; his being 
forced to vanish away at cock-crowing, and the nymphs constantly 
visiting him. 

* Lycophron says, Achilles was nine cubits high, and Quintus Cala- 
ber, that his statue was equal to that of a giant. 

t Spercuius, a river of Thessaly. Peleus vowed to the God of this 
river, the hair of his son Achilles, if he ever returned safe from the 
Trojan war. 

Spercuius ; whose waves in mazy errors lost 

Delightful roll along my native coast ; 

To whom my father vow*d at my return 

Those locks to fall, and hecatombs to burn. Homer, b. xxiii. 



204 

by his father at the time when his cheeks were clothed- 
with their first down. He told me he was fortunate in 
meeting with such a man as myself. The Thessalians, 
said he, have long discontinued paying me their accustomed 
offerings to the dead, but as yet I have shewn them no 
mark of my displeasure. I have not wished it, for were 
I angry, their destruction would be more certain than that 
of the Greeks, who of old inhabited this country. As 
their friend, I advise them not to offer any insult to ceremo- 
nies, which have been established by law, nor to shew 
themselves in a light worse than the Trojans, who, not- 
withstanding the numbers of them destroyed by my valour, 
never cease offering sacrifice to me m public, and present- 
ing their first fruits in due season, and still soliciting by 
stated supplication and prayer, a reconciliation, which I 
will never grant. The perjuries, of which they were 
guilty, on my account, shall never suffer Ilium to recover 
its ancient splendour, nor rise to that acme of glory, to 
which other fallen cities have risen ; but they shall inhabit 
it in no better condition than if taken the day before. 
That I may not be induced to act thus with the Thessa- 
lians, I request you to go as embassador to their common 
council, and treat of what I have mentioned. To this I 
acceded from a conviction of my embassy being to prevent 
their destruction. But I have a request to make you, 
Achilles, said I : I know it, replied he, you are now 
going to make some inquiry about what passed at Troy : 
You have therefore my full permission to propose five 
questions such as you wish, and the fates allow. I first 
asked if he had obtained the rites of sepulture according 
to the account given by the poets ? I lie, replied he, in 
the way most agreeable to Patrocles and myself. From 
our youth we lived in the truest harmony, and now the 
same golden urn contains our ashes as if still one. With 
respect to the tears, said to have been shed by the Muses, 



404 

and Nereids at my tomb, I can tell you, the former were 
not present on the occasion,* but the latter were, who 
still continue their lamentations. I asked next whether 
Polyxena was sacrificed on his account.^ She died, re- 
plied he, on my tomb, and was not slain by the Greeks. 
She approached my tomb of her own accord, and from 
the desire of paying all honour, and respect, to our mutual 
love, fell on a drawn sword. My third question was, 
whether Helen was carried to Troy, or whether that was 
a fiction of Homer's ? On this subject, said Achilles, we 
were long kept in the dark, yet we continued sending am- 
bassadors to the Trojans, and fighting battles for her sake, 
as if she had been in Troy. But the truth is, she was then 
in Egypt, living in the house of Proteus, to which she 
had been conveyed by Paris.J After we came to the 
knowledge of this, we, regardless of her, fought to take 
Troy, and to return home not with disgrace. I then 
came to my fourth question, and said, I was astonished 



* As the people of Ilium were held to be barbarians by the Greeks, 
Philostratus supposes that the muses kept as far distant as they could 
on the occasion ; however, it appears from the following verses of Pin- 
dar, that they were present — 

Tho' death had clos'd the hero's* eyes, 

Prais'd by the Muse his virtues rise ; * 

For round his pile, his silent tomb, 

The Heliconian virgins come : 

With down-cast eyes, they weep, they groan, 

And pour forth memorable moan, &c. 

Isthm. Od. 8. 

t The common opinion was, that after Troy was taken, the Greeks 
sacrificed Polyxena on his tomb, as his ghost requested. 

; This detention of Helen by Proteus, is the argument of one of the 
tragedies of Euripides. See Herodotus — Euterpe. 



* Achilles. 



206 

how Greece could in one age produce so many great men 
as Homer says were at Troy at the same time. To this, 
Achilles said, the barbarians were not inferior to us in that 
respect, so greatly then did the earth flourish with valiant 
men. My fifth question was, how it came to pass, that 
Homer was not acquainted with Palamedes, or if he 
was, how it happened he did not mention him? If Pala- 
medes was not at Troy, no such place as Troy ever exist- 
ed. Because this great man, renowned for his wisdom 
and military knowledge, was put to death to gratify the 
hatred of Ulysses, Homer makes no mention of him in 
his poems, lest he should cast a reproach on the character 
of that crafty son of Laertes . The recollection of Pala- 
medes brought tears into the eyes of Achilles, who la- 
mented him as a man distinguished for beauty, and great 
valour, though young, as one who excelled most other men 
in modesty, and love of learning. But do you, Apol- 
lonius, (for you know a necessary bond of amity always 
subsists among the wise) take care of his sepulchre, and 
restore his statue, which lies prostrate on the ground. 
You will find it in iEolis, which is over against Methym- 
na in Lesbos. After saying these things, with others rela- 
tive to the Parian youth, he vanished in a flash of lightning 
just at the time the cock crew. # This is all that passed on 
board the ship. 



-The morning cock crew loud, 



And at the sound, it shrunk in haste away, 
And vanish'd from our sight. — 

w It faded with the crowing of the cock." — 

Shakespeare's Hamlet. 

This is a very ancient superstition, says Stevens, for Philostratus, 
giving an account of the apparition of Achilles's shade to Apollonius, 
adds, that it vanished with a little glimmer as soon as the cock crow'd. 

Notes on Shakespeare. 
Mrs. 



i07 



CHAP. XVII. 

APOLLONIUS entered the Piraeus at the time of the 
celebration of the mysteries, when Athens is most crowd- 
ed with people from all parts of Greece.* The moment 
he landed, he proceeded as fast as he could to the city, 
where, when he arrived, he found many philosophers on 
the point of descending to the Piraeus. Some of them 
were naked, and exposed to the sun's rays (which are quite 
hot and sultry at Athens during the autumnal season) some 
were reading books, which they had in their hands — 
others declaiming, and others disputing. All acknow- 
ledged Apollonius as he approached, and returned with 
him amidst many greetings of joy. Ten young men run 
to meet him, who with hands out stretched to the Acro- 
polis, cried out, we swear by Minerva, who presidest in 



Mrs. Montague, without being acquainted with the passage in the 
text, supposed the vanishing of the ghost in Hamlet, as another cir- 
cumstance of the established superstition of the north. See her very 
ingenious essay on the writings, and genius of Shakespear. — Proper- 
tius has a passage in the 8th elegy o^his 4th book, which mentions 
the disappearing of all spectres at day-break,— 

Noct£ vagae ferimur. Nox clausa liberat umbras, 
Errat, & abject!. Cerberus ipse serk. 
Luce jubent leges Lethaea ad stagna reverti : 
Nos vehimur : victum nauta recenset onus. 

Claudian says, of the shade of Theodosius., 
Dixit, et afflatus vicino sole refugit. 

* The lesser mysteries are here to be understood, which were celebrat- 
ed in honour of Proserpine at Agrae, a place near the river Uissiis in 
the month Anthesterion, which corresponded with the Roman Novem- 
ber. The greater were celebrated in honour of Ceres at Eleusis in the 
month Boedromion, the Roman August, or September. 



208 

that place, that we were going down to the Piraeus with 
the intention of going over to Ionia. Apollonius received 
them with kindness, and said, he congratulated them on 
their love for philosophy. 



CHAP. XVIII. 

THE day of his arrival was that of the Epidaurian festi- 
val,* on which the Athenians had a custom, when the 
usual acclamations and sacrifices were over, of having a 
new initiation, in which the lesser mysteries were repeated. 
This initiation was established in favour of Esculapius, 
who was admitted to the honours of it, on account of com- 
ing from Epidaurus after the great mysteries were finished. 
As soon as Apollonius appeared, the people, regardless of 
the religious rites in which they were engaged, crowded to 
see him, more anxious about him, than being initiated them- 
selves. Apollonius said, he would speak to them at a 
more convenient time, and desired them to -mind their 
holy rites, as he wished to be initiated himself. But the 
Hierophantf would not admit him to that honour, at the 
same time saying, he was not permitted by the laws to ini- 
tiate an inchanter ;J or reveal the Eleusinian mysteries to 
a man not pure in things touching religion. Apollonius, 
without being affected by this observation, said, you 



* The eighth day of the mysteries was called the day of the Epidau- 
rians, because /Esculapius coming from Epidaurus to Athens, and 
desiring to be initiated, the lesser mysteries were repeated. Hence it 
became customary to celebrate them a second time on this day, and to 
initiate those who had not already enjoyed the privilege. 

t The chief person that attended at the initiation was called 
'l(po9avTec, a revealer of holy things. 

| Meursius says, all barbarians, murderers, magicians, mounte- 
banks, and impious persons, were excluded from admission. 



209 

have not takeO notice of one of the severest accusal, 
that might be urged agaiust me, which is, that of my know- 
ing more of the initiation than you do yourself; and yet, 
notwithstanding my superior knowledge, I am come to you 
for admission, as if you were wiser. All present praised 
him for this firm and pertinent answer. As soon as the 
Hierophant was sensible that the rejection of Apollonius 
was not pleasing to the people, he changed his language, 
and said, Accept, I pray thee, the initiation, as I think 
you are wise. Then Apollonius said, I will take my own 
time for being initiated, when the ceremony shall be in 
other hands. Saying this, he named the very Hierophant. 
who was to succeed the present one, and preside at the 
ceremony, which literally took place about four years after 



CHAP. XIX. 

OF the discourses which Apollonius maintained whilst at 
Athens, Damis says, he has not committed them all to 
writing, but only such of them as he thought necessary, 
and were on subjects of importance. When he perceived 
the people of Athens were much given to religious wor- 
ship, he made sacrifices the subject of his discourse, 
wherein he specified the kind of offering best suited to 
each God, and the precise hour of day* and night when 
they should sacrifice, or pray, or offer libations. And 
there is still extant a treatise of his, in which these things 
are explained in his native tongue. -f Of these matters he 
discoursed first, because he thought such topics becoming 



* This is agreeable to the rule of Pythagoras, who said that Gods 
and heroes were not to be worshipped with equal honours, tor that the 
Gods were always to be worshipped, and heroes only from noon. 

t Cappadocian Tyana was in Cappadocia. 



210 

their wisdom and his own ; and next, to let them see how 
improperly and ignorantly he had been treated by the 
Hierophant: for who could believe him unsound in things 
touching the Gods, who was capable of teaching how each 
of them should be worshipped. 



CHAP. XX. 

WHEN he was treating of the best mode of offering liba- 
tions, there happened to be present a young man who was 
very effeminate, and so proverbially luxurious, as fit to be 
made the subject of one of those songs that are used to be 
sung in the serving up of great feasts.* He was a native 
of Corcyra, and descended from Alcinous the Phceaciau, 
who entertained Ulysses so well of old. Libations being the 
subject of the discourse, Apollonius gave it as his opinion, 
that men should not drink out of the cup used in that cere- 
mony, but should keep it pure and untouched for the 
Gods. But when he said that the cup ought .to have ears, 
and that the wine should be poured out of the side where 
the ears are placed,*f- as being that part which men sel- 



• fjta^Giofxajv aa-fxa — Mazonomum was a large dish, containing various 
kinds of meat, which was handed about (to the sound of music, it may 
be supposed) that each of the guests might take what he chose. Any 
uncommon dish, says Macrobius, was introduced to the sound of the 
flute. Carving at table was performed to the sound of music. In Tri- 
malchio's feast, in Petronius, every thing was served to some tune or 
other. 

t This mode of offering libations to the Gods is supposed by some 
to refer to the 59th Symbol of Pythagoras, which says, " Make the 
libations to the Gods by the ear f signifying, says Porphyry, that we 
ought to worship and celebrate the Gods with music, for that passeth 
in at the ears. However, this way of explaining the symbol, though 
adopted by Dacier, is considered by Olearius as inept, and little to the 
purpose — who thinks it only relates to the observing of a greater reve. 
rence in the worship of the Gods, 



211 

domest applied to the mouth, the youth burst out into an 
immoderate fit of laughter. Whereupon Apollonius, look- 
iug stedfastly upon him, said, It is not you whom I consi- 
der as offering me this insult, but the demon within you : 
it is he who makes you in ignorance commit this folly. 
Till this moment the youth knew not he was possessed by 
a demon,* though he laughed and cried in turns, without 
any apparent cause, and even sung and talked to himself. 
Many thought all this brought on by intemperance in his 
youth ; but the fact was, he was impelled by a demon, 
and committed all the wild extravagancies practised by 
people in that situation. As soon as Apollonius fixed his 
eyes upon him, the demon broke out into all those angry 
horrid expressions used by people on the rack, and then 
swore he would depart out of the youth, and never again 



* In this instance Apollonius must have been more than a conjurer, 
could he have known what the pretended proprietor of the demon him- 
self did not know. The ignorance of the youth on the occasion is, in 
my opinion, a full confutation of the marvellous part taken by Apollo- 
nius, and is a further proof, among many others, of his conceit and 
presumption, if he attempted to impose on the spectators iu the man- 
ner mentioned by Philostratus. 

From Origen and the other fathers it appears, that the power of 
casting out devils was considered as an art grounded on certain rules, 
which were taught and delivered in books, and was common both to 
Jews and Gentiles, who by their tricks and false miracles contrived to 
delude the credulous multitude, in order to acquire gain or power to 
themselves, and to keep their people firm to their several religions, in 
opposition to the Christian. 

There is a story in Josephus of Eleazar casting out devils in the pre- 
sence of Vespasian, on which I believe the one before us is founded. — 
Antiquities of the Jews, b. viii. 

Here Du Pin says, " II n'y a rien a tout cela de merveilleux que la 
statue qui tomba dans le moment; mais qui nous peut assurer que ce 
ne soit pas une invention de Philostrate, ou de Damis, ou un artifice 
d'Apollone, qui avoit des gens apostiz poor jetter a bas la statue dans le 
moment qu'il avoit command^ au demon d'y entrer. 

P « 



212 

enter another. Apollonius rebuked him, as masters do 
their cunning, saucy, insolent slaves, and commanded him 
to come out of the youth, and in so doing to give a visible 
sign of his departure. Immediately the demon cried out, 
I will make that statue tumble, to which he pointed, stand- 
ing in a royal portico, where the transaction happened. 
But who is able to describe the noise and tumult, and, 
clapping of hands with joy, when they saw the statue first 
begin to shake, then totter, and then tumble down? The 
young man rubbed his eyes like one awoke from a deep 
sleep, and turning them to the sun's light, seemed quite 
shocked at the idea of standing so conspicuous and exposed 
to all beholders. He no longer retained the wild disturbed 
look of intemperance, but returned to his right mind, as 
if recovered by the use of medicine alone. Then laying 
aside his soft garments and all his fashionable Sybaritic 
airs,* he adapted the homely simplicity and plain garb of 
a philosopher, and lived after the rules of Apollonius. 



CHAP. XXL 

IT is said Apollonius rebuked the Athenians for the man- 
ner in which they celebrated the feasts of Bacchus which 
take place in the month Anthesterion. He formed the 
idea of going to the theatre to hear the monodies and me- 
lodies, and the songs of the chorus, and the notes with 
which they were sung in both tragedy and comedy. But 
when he understood that the performance was chiefly com- 
posed of dancing, and of dancing to the effeminate sound 
of the flute, and that with the epic and divine verses of 
Orpheus were mixed the representations of the heroes, 



* Sybaris, a town in Lucania, on the bay of Tarentum, whose inha.' 
bitants became so effeminate that the word Sybarite was proverbial to 
denote a man devoted to pleasure. 



213 

nymphs, and Bacchantes, he was astonished, and cried 
out, Cease, I pray you, insulting the ears of Salamis, 
and the many brave men who formerly fell for their coun- 
try. If your dancing was after the manner of the Spar- 
tans, I would exclaim, Well doue, soldiers ; you are 
making ready for battle : I shall make one in your dance. 
But seeing it is effeminate, and of the most voluptuous 
tendency, what am I to say of your trophies? for they will 
stand, not as monuments of shame to the Medes and Per- 
sians, but to yourselves, in case you become degenerate and 
inferior to those valiant men who erected them ? But 
whence these garments, died in saffron and purple ? It was 
not in such the borough Acharna was dressed ; nor the 
tribe of Colonos rode in battle. But why do I say this ? 
A woman* from Caria commanded a ship, and sailed with 
Xerxes against you. She wore the dress and armour of a 
man, and had nothing womanish in her appearauce. But 
you are now more effeminate than the women of Xerxes ; 
you are set in array against yourselves, old and young, and 
even the children. The very people who formerly swore 
in the temple of Agraulos to fight and die for their coun- 
try, will now, perhaps, swear to perform the parts of 
Bacchanalians, and arm themselves with a thyrsus in its 
defence, and will lay aside their helmets, and disguise 
themselves in the shameful masks of women, Besides, I 
hear of your representing the winds, and in their charac- 
ters swelling the sails of ships, and raising them aloft in the 
air. These winds you ought to respect as your best 
allies, for having blown of old so much in your favour. 
Yet Boreas, who is your kinsman, and more masculine 
than the other winds, should not be represented as a wo- 
man, for he never would have fallen in love with Orithyia 
had he seen her in such unbecoming characters. 



* Artemisia, 



«14 



CHAP. XXII. 

WHILST he staid at Athens, the following abuse was 
corrected by him. The people, he observed, ran in crouds 
to the theatre on the Acropolis, to see the combats of 
gladiators.* Their passion for such sports was greater at 
Athens than it is at this day at Corinth. Adulterers, for- 
nicators, house-breakers, cut-purses, men-stealers, and 
others of the same vile description, were bought at high 
prices, and armed and forced to fight with each other. 
This barbarous custom was most severely censured by 
Apollonius. He refused going to their assembly when in- 
vited, saying, the place was impure and polluted with 
blood. To this he alluded in an epistle, wherein he ex- 
pressed his surprise that the Goddess Minerva had not 
abandoned her citadel, where so much blood was spilt ; 
for, added he, if you go on in this manner, you will slay in 
the Grand Panathenoean Procession, not hecatombs of 
oxen, but of men. And can you, Bacchus, vouchsafe to 
enter the theatre where so much blood is shed ? and in the 
very place where the wise Athenians offer you their liba- 
tions ? Fie, Bacchus, depart. Citheron is much purer 
than such a theatre. These are the things which chiefly 
claimed his attention as a philosopher, whilst he sojourned 
at Athens. 

CHAP. xxm. 

DEPARTING from Athens, he went in obedience to 
the commands of Achilles on his embassy to the Thessa- 



* The first shew of gladiators exhibited at Rome, was in the year of 
the city 490, I have not been able to learn at what time they were 

first 



'215 

lians, who happened at that time to be assembled at 
Thermopylae, fulfilling their duty at the Amphictyonic 
Council. Fearful of the consequences which might ensue 
from neglecting the message communicated to them, they 
immediately consented to a full re-establishment of all 
necessary rites at his tomb. During his stay here, he al- 
most surrounded the tomb of Leonidas with a chapel, out 
of esteem for his memory. When they were going to the 
hill where it is said the Lacedaemonians fell overwhelmed 
with arrows, he heard his friends disputing about what 
ground they considered the highest in Greece (at this time 
mount GEta was full in their view) Apollonius ascending 
the hill, cried out, This is the highest ground. The men 
who died here in defence of liberty have made it equal to 
mount GEta, and raised it above many Olympusses. I 
love the men, but above all, Magistias, the Acarnanian, 
who, foreknowing what they were to suffer, wished to 
share with them their fate — fearing not death, but fearing 
it might not be permitted him to die with them. 



CHAP. XXIV. 

HE visited all the temples of Greece, the Dodonean,* 
the Pythian, and the temple at Abae. He entered the 
cave of Amphiaraus and Trophonius, and ascended the 
top of Helicon, on which was erected the temple of the 
Muse 8. In visiting and reforming the temples, he was 
attended by the priests and his familiar friends. In all 
places stood exposed to public view cisterns of his dis- 



first introduced into Greece, or for what purpose. Barbarous and 
bloody as the custom was, it was not abolished till the time of Constan- 
tine. Thanks to the mild spirit of Christianity for the abolition. 

* The oracles of Dodona and Delphi are well known. Abae is a 
town of Phocis, famous for an oracle of Apollo. 



•216 

courses,* out of which all who were thirsty might drink. 
When the time of the celebration of the Olympic Games 
was at hand, he received an invitation from the Eleans to 
attend. On this occasion Apollonius said, Methinks, ye 
men of Elis, you tarnish the glory of your games, by the 
necessity under which you find yourselves of sending such 
like invitations. Once when he was at the Isthmus and 
heard the sea roaring round Lachaeum, he cried out, 
" This neck of land shall, or rather shall not be cut 
through." These words shewed he had a fore-knowledge 
of the attempt made seven years after by the emperor 
Nero. This prince left his seat of empire, and became 
subject to the voice of the common cryer at the Olympic 
and Pythian Games. Victories he gained at the Isthmian 
Games ; but what were they ? Victories over harpers and 
heralds. Others he won at the Olympic ; but what were 
they ? Victories over performers in tragedy. When at 
Corinth, it is said, he formed the design of cutting through 
the Isthmus, in order to make it pervious for his shipping. 
By joining the Adriatic to the iEgean sea, he. thought to 
save the passage round Cape Malea. But how did the 
prophecy of Apollonius turn out? The cut was begun 
from Lechaeum, and by immense labour was carried about 
four stadias. At last Nero gave it up, by the advice of 
some Egyptians^ who, after taking the level of the two 



* It is known that the ancients made use of large vessels in their en- 
tertainments, called crateres, from which wine was drawn to distribute 
to the guests, I have used cistern in my translation, as a kind of figura- 
tive expression, to give some specimen of what Photius calls an ele- 
gance peculiar to Philostratus, from its being, I suppose, not unlike 
what our Saviour says in St. John's Gospel — " But whosoever drinketh 
of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst; but the water 
that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into 
everlasting life." 

t In Achaia, Nero attempted to make a cut through the Isthmus, 
and encouraged the guards, in a speech which he made to them, to 

begin 



'217 

seas, gave it as their opinion that iEgina would be drowned 
by the overflow of waters which would rush from 
Lechaeum. Others said the work was stopped from the 
apprehensions of an insurrection. All which exactly cor- 
responded with what Apollonius said, " The Isthmus 
shall, or shall not be cut through." 



CHAP. XXV. 

AT this time Demetrius, the philosopher, happened to be 
in Corinth, a man who fully comprehended the whole force 
of the Cynic philosophy, and who is mentioned with great 
respect by Favonius in his orations. Demetrius # felt the 
same zeal in favour of the wisdom of Apollonius as Antis- 
thenes did for that of Socrates, which he gave as his 
reason for becoming one of his followers, and for recom- 
mending to his notice the most esteemed of his friends. 
Of this number was Menippus, a young Lycian, about 
twenty-five years of age, who was intelligent and hand- 
some, with the open manly air of an Athleta. It was 
said a rich woman, that was a foreigner, beautiful and de- 
licate in her appearance, had fallen in love with him, of 



begin the work: and upon a signal given by sound of trumpet, he first 
broke ground with a spade, and carried off a basket full of earth upon 
his shoulders. Suetonius. 

* Demetrius, a cynic philosopher, whom the Emperor Caligula 
wished to gain in his interest by a large present ; but Demetrius refused 
it with indignation, and said, if Caligula wishes to bribe me, let him 
send me his crown. Vespasian was displeased with his insolence, and 
banished him to an island. The Cynic derided the punishment, and 
bitterly iuveighed against the Emperor. He died when very far ad- 
vanced in years, and Seneca observes, that " Nature brought him 
forth, to shew to mankind that an exalted genius can live securely, 
without being corrupted by the vice of the surrounding world." 

Leiuprieri. 



1218 

which nothing was real, all imaginary. As the story goes, 
a figure met him, when alone on the road to Cenchrea, 
which had the look of a woman, who took him by the 
hand, and avowed a tender passion for him. She said, she 
was a Phenician, but at present dwelt in one of the sub- 
urbs of Corinth, which she named, where, added she, if 
you come, you shall hear me sing, and shall drink such 
wine as you never drank of before. You shall have no 
hindrance in your amours from a rival, and with a man of 
honour I shall live honourably. The youth, overcome by 
what he heard (for though he loved philosophy much, he 
loved Venus more) visited her in the evening, and conti- 
nued afterwards to visit her as his mistress, without the 
slightest suspicion of her being a spectre. But Apollonius 
looking on Menippus as a statuary would do, delineated 
him fully in his own mind, which, when done, he said, 
You who are beautiful, and courted by beautiful women, 
know this, that "you cherish a serpent, and a serpent 
cherishes you ;" at which Menippus being amazed, Apol- 
lonius continued, You love a woman whom you can never 
make your wife. Do you think yourself loved by her, 
said Apollonius ? I think I am, said the youth. And do 
you propose marrying her, said he ? I do, returned the 
other, for that will be the completion of all my happiness. 
For what day, said Apollonius, are the nuptials fixed ? 
Perhaps for to-morrow, said the youth, as all things are 
prepared, and as we say, the iron hot. Apollonius, who 
had marked the precise time of the wedding feast, entered 
along with the other guests, and instantly asked, Where is 
she who is the cause of this banqueting ? Here at hand, 
replied Menippus, who rose blushing. Apollonius conti- 
nued, This gold and silver, with all the other rich orna- 
ments of this apartment, whose are they? The bride's, 
said he ; for what fortune I have consists in this cloak I 
wear, which he shewed. Then, continued Apollonius, 
have you ever seen the gardens of Tantalus, which are, 



219 

and are not ? We have seen them, said they, in Homer ; 
for we have not yet descended to the infernal regions. As 
are the gardens in Homer, so is all you see here — all 
shew, and no reality. And that you may know the truth 
of what I say, your intended wife is one of the Empusae, 
who pass under the names of Lamiae and Larvae. They 
are little affected by the passion of love, and are fond of 
nothing but flesh, and that human; for by their attentions 
they attract all whom they wish to devour. Take care, 
Sir, of what you say, said she, and seeming much discon- 
certed at what she heard, ran out into many invectives 
against the whole race of philosophers, as being much 
given up to vain and impertinent trifling. But, as Apollo- 
nius said, every thing vanished into air ; the gold and silver 
vessels, cup-bearers, and cooks, and the whole domestic 
apparatus. Whereupon the phantom appearing as if in 
tears, begged not to be tormented,* nor forced to make a 
confession. But Apollonius was peremptory, and said she 
should not stir till she confessed what she was. She then 
owned herself to be an Empusa, who had pampered Me- 
nippus with rich dainties, for the express purpose of de- 
vouring him; adding, that it was her custom to feed on 
young and beautiful bodies, for the sake of the pure blood 
in them. I have been necessarily induced to mention this 
transaction, as it was one of the most celebrated perform- 



* This is the only instance in which the very words of scripture are 
used. See the Gospel of St. Luke, chap. viii. ver. 28. where a Demo- 
niac is cured by our blessed Saviour. But when we compare the two 
accounts, the sober, artless narrative of the one, contrasted with the 
nonsensical stuff of the other, the difference is most striking. I agree 
with the learned author of the Criterion in thinking that such a simili- 
tude of expression could scarcely arise from mere chance ; and yet I 
cannot help thinking, that if Philostratus had been well acquainted 
with the history of Christ, and had intended making his hero his coun- 
terpart, he might have been more successful in his attempt. — £o<r«m£i:» 
is the common Greek word that signifies to torment. 



220 

ed by Apollonius,* and as it happened in the centre of 
Greece, many were acquainted with it. Yet it was known 
only in a general way of Apollonius having surprised a 
Lamia at Corinth, but the particulars of its being done in 
favour of Menippus, &c. was till then unknown. The ac- 
count I have given of it is taken from Damis, and the 
writings he left behind him.f 



CHAP. XXVI. 

IT was about this time he had a dispute with one Bassus, 
a Corinthian, who not only seemed, but was believed to 
be a parricide. He was a fellow who made false pre- 
tences to philosophy, and had a most abusive tongue, 
which Apollonius reprimanded partly by letter and partly 
by word. There is no reason to doubt the truth of what 
he has written of this parricide ; for it is not likely that a 
man such as Apollonius was, should have deigned to rebuke 
so vile a fellow, and in doing it to utter a falsehood. 



CHAP. XXVII. 

THE account given of what Apollonius did at Olympia is 
as follows : On his arrival, embassadors waited on him 
from Lacedaemon, requesting him to pay them a visit. 
They had nothing like old Sparta in their appearance, and 
were more effeminate than what could have been sup- 



* If this was one of the most celebrated of Apollonius's perform- 
ances, what are we to think of the rest — and, above all, what are we to 
think of the simplicity, or rather fatuity of Damis, who, after such a 
specimen of fantastic buffoonery, could have followed him as a man 
possessed of more than human powers? 

t Le conte de Beelphegor et celui-ci sont de meme genre. 

Du Pin. 



221 

posed ; in fact they looked as if they had breathed all their 
lives the air of Sybaris. As soon as he beheld their 
smooth limbs, and hair dropping with odours, their beard- 
less faces and soft garments, he wrote thus to the Ephori: 
*' Let a proclamation issue, forbidding the use of pitch in 
the baths, and all other depilatory preparations, and let the 
ancient mode of living be re-established ; which, if done, 
it might be expected the old Palestra would revive, and the 
confederations, and the societies of friendship, and Lace- 
daemon look like itself. When he was informed that the 
Ephori had done what he desired, he wrote them another 
letter, more concise than their ancient Scytala. — Here it is. 

"Apollonius to the Ephori greeting." 

" It is the part of men to err, but of ingenuous men to 
acknowledge it." 



CHAP. XXVIII. 

ONCE as he was observing the famous statue of Olym- 
pia, he said, Hail, propitious Jove, for your goodness 
reaches to, and is imparted to all mankind. Afterwards 
he noticed the brazen statue of Milo, # and explained its 
particular form and attitude. This statue is represented 
standing on a discus, with the feet united, holding in the 
left hand a pomegranate ; the fingers of the right hand are 
stretched out, and joined close together. The stories cur- 
rent in Olympia and Arcadia of Milo were, that he was a 
wrestler of invincible strength, not to be moved out of the 



* One cause of his paying so much attention to the statue of Milo 
was, his being a disciple of Pythagoras, who had the merit of saving 
his master's life by means of his superior strength. His statue was 
made by Daraeas, the Crotonian, and was placed in Olympia for having 
been six times victorious in wrestling in the Olympic Games. 



222 

position in which he placed himself. The tenacity of his 
fingers was marked by the manner in which he held the 
pomegranate ; and the impossibility of separating them by 
external force was marked by their juxta-position. The 
fillet round his head was considered as a symbol of mo* 
desty. These circumstances, Apollonius said, were de- 
signed in wisdom, but were more ingeniously designed 
than what were true. Here is the true signification of 
Milo and his statue. The people of Crotona made him 
the priest of Juno ; hence the propriety of his wearing a 
mitre or fillet in that sacred character. The pomegra- 
nate* is the only plant which is sacred to Juno. From 
the discus under his feet we understand, that Milo, being 
the priest of Juno, and standing on a small buckler, used 
from it to offer his supplications to her ; the same is signi- 
fied by the holding out of the right hand. The insepara- 
ble position of the fingers shews clearly the excellence of 
ancient sculpture. 



CHAP. XXIX. 

AFTER seeing whatever is generally done at Elis, he 
praised the Eleans for the order and decency which were 
every where conspicuous. They were indeed no less 
anxious than the Athletae themselves to have their conduct 
approved by the public ; and this anxiety made them take 



* Pausanias says, " The particulars respecting the pomegranate, as 
they belong to an arcane discourse, I shall pass by in silence." This 
mysterium arcanum is thus explained by Olearius: 

Nempe in ^va-mn rtQeoXtyefxtvri Juno est pnncipium rerum naturalinm 
passimm, ut activum Jupiter, a quo inipraegnata Juno Semina rerum 
divino utero concipit. Quorum cum innumera sit multitudo, atque 
varietas, ista Junonis, tot seminibus foeke, facunditas malo Punico 
Symbolice fuit designata, in quo maxima inter omnia poma seminum 
«opia. 



2£3 

particular pains to avoid every fault, either voluntary or in* 
voluntary. When he was asked by his companions what he 
thought of the people of Elis in respect to the order esta- 
blished at the games, he said, Whether they are entitled to 
the appellation of wise I know not ; but I am sure they 
are to that of sophists. 



CHAP. XXX. 

HOW he inveighed against authors who vainly thought 
they excelled in writing, and how illiterate he considered 
all who attempted to discuss subjects superior to their abi- 
lities, may be collected from what follows. A young ar- 
rogant philosopher met him in the temple, who thus ad- 
dressed him : Pray favour me with your company to-mor- 
row, for I have something to recite. Apollonius asked 
what it was. An oration, replied he, which I have com- 
posed in praise of Jupiter, and with these words immedi- 
ately shewed the composition he had concealed under his 
cloak, piquing himself, as it were, on the size of his vo- 
lume. And what, said Apollonius, do you praise in Ju- 
piter ? or is it the Jupiter of Olympia you commend, and 
say of him that there is nothing like him in the whole 
world ! All this I have done, said he, and much besides ; 
for I say, that to Jove we are indebted for the hours, and 
for whatever is on the earth, and under the earth ; for the 
winds that blow, and the stars of heaven. To me, said 
Apollonius, you appear an excellent panegyrist. So I 
think myself, said he ; for I have written also in praise of 
the gout, and of blindness and deafness. If, said Apollo- 
nius, you have a passion for praising things of this nature, 
I suppose dropsies and catarrhs will not be strangers to 
your panegyric? And yet, methinks, you would gain more 
reputation by attending the dead to their graves, and there 
reciting the praises of the disorders of which each died. 



324 

Such a mark of affectionate attention would soothe the 
grief of their fathers, sons, and near relations. When 
Apollonius perceived that the youth's vanity was somewhat 
humbled by what he said, he continued, Young author, 
do you think a man will praise better what he knows, than 
what he does not ? What he knows, most certainly ; for 
how can he praise what he is ignorant of? Pray, said 
Apollonius, have you ever written any thing in praise of 
your father? It was my wish, said he, to do so; but 
when I found he excelled all my acquaintances in gene- 
rosity, goodness, economy, and wisdom, I declined it, 
lest he might have been dishonoured by unbecoming com- 
mendation. When Apollonius heard this, he was greatly 
incensed (being sometimes subject to such passions, when- 
ever he had to deal with absurd people) and cried out, 
Wretch, have you, who thought yourself not capable of 
praising your father, whom you know as well as yourself, 
as he deserved, have you, I say, thought it a light matter 
to praise the Father of Gods and men, without having 
either any fear of him whom you praised, or any apprehen- 
sion of being engaged in a work surpassing all human 
ability? 



CHAP. XXXI. 

WHILST Apollonius staid at Olympia, his conversation 
turned chiefly on the topics most useful to mankind ; name- 
ly, fortitude, wisdom, temperance, and, in short, all the 
virtues. On these subjects he discoursed in the porch of 
the temple, making his hearers admire not only the excel- 
lence of his ideas, but the eloquence with Which he uttered 
them. The Lacedaemonians ran to him in crouds, and 
pronounced him, in the presence of Jupiter, their guest, 
the father and director of the young, and the ornament of 
the old. A Corinthian happening to be present, asked 



225 

with some degree of pique, if they intended paying him 
the accustomed honours of a Theophany r* Then, swear- 
ing by Castor and Pollux, they cried out, Every thing was 
ready for the occasion. But Apollonius would not suffer 
it, fearing thereby to create envyings and jealousies. 
Afterwards passing mount Taygetus, and enterirtg the con- 
fines of Lacedaemon, he found the inhabitants all busy 
about their own affairs, and zealous in the observance of 
the ancient institutions, of Lycurgus. This made him 
think it would not be unpleasant to discourse with their 
magistrates on whatever subjects they might wish to discuss. 
The first question they asked him on his arrival was, lit 
what manner the Gods were to be worshipped ?*f- He an- 
swered, as masters. Then how heroes r and he said as 
fathers. And afterwards they asked how men were to be 
honoured ? and he said, the question was not fit forSparta 
to ask. They then inquired what he thought of their 
laws ; to which he replied, Laws are excellent masters , 
and masters will be applauded in proportion to the dili- 
gence and industry of their scholars. Lastly, when they 
asked him what advice he would give on the subject of 
fortitude, To use it, if you have it, was his answer 



CHAP. XXXII. 

DURING his stay here, a young Lacedaemonian happen- 
ed to be accused of transgressing the laws and customs of 
his country, who was of the family of Callicratidas, that 



* Theophany, oto<pana, the appearance of God, was a festival ob- 
served by the Delphians on the day that Apollo first manifested himself 
to them. 

t " We mnst in worship prefer Gods before Demons," says Pytha- 
goras, " and heroes before men." 

Q 



£26 

commanded the fleet at Arginusae.* This youth sailed as 
far as Carthage and Sicily in vessels of his own construc- 
tion, and was so much devoted to naval affairs as to forget 
those of the republic. When Apollonius learnt he was to 
be tried on the above charge, he thought it would be hard 
to desert him on such an occasion. In consequence of 
this, he waited on him to inquire the cause of his present 
embarrassment. A suit, said the youth, is publicly insti- 
tuted against me for my love of navigation, and for neglect- 
ing the affairs of the republic. Pray, said Apollonius, 
what were your father and grandfather ; were they nautical 
men ? No, returned the youth, not at all ; they were gym- 
nasiarchs, and ephori, and all guardians of the laws. 
Among my ancestors I number Cailicratidas, who com- 
manded the fleet. Do you allude to him who fought at 
Arginusae ? The same, said he, who died in the com- 
mand. Has not the death of such an ancestor, said Apol- 
lonius, given you an aversion to the sea ? No, said he ; 
my employment at sea is not that of fighting. And can 
you, said Apollonius, name a race of men more miserable 
than that of merchants and mariners, roaming from sea to 
sea, seeking the best markets, living with factors and 
brokers, who lend out their money at unconscionable in- 
terest, wherever the speediest returns of gain are expected. 
When all this is done, if every thing prospers as they wish, 
they cry out, their ship has made a good voyage, and 
boast of never having lost a cargo either with or without 
their leave. But on the other hand, if their gains prove 
insufficient for the discharge of their debts, what* do they 
do ? They step into their long-boat, run their ship aground 
among the rocks, of which they throw the fault on the 



* Three small islands near the continent, between Mitylene and 
iMethymna, where the Lacedaemonian fleet was conquered by Conon, 
the Athenian. 



227 

irresistible will of heaven, whilst the property of others 
goes to the bottom without the least regret. But though 
the lives of seafaring men be not exactly such as we have 
described them, yet for Spartans, sprung from Spartans, 
whose ancestors lived in the midst of Sparta — for them, I 
say, to languish in the hold of a ship, without any recol- 
lection of either Lycurgus or Iphitus, attentive only to 
bales of goods and nautical concerns, how ignominious. 
If nothing else could convince them of their state of de- 
gradation, why not call to mind, that whilst Sparta was 
confined solely to her landed possessions, her glory rose to 
the skies ; and when she became a naval power, her glory 
faded, and was blotted out from both land and sea. The 
young man, deeply affected by this discourse, held down 
his head, wept bitterly when he became sensible of his 
own degeneracy, and quitted the sea, where he had spent 
most part of his life. As soon as Apollonius found that 
the youth had come to his right mind, and gave the pre- 
ference to the landed interest, he introduced him to the 
notice of the ephori, and obtained his acquittal and 
pardon. 

CHAP XXXIII. 

ANOTHER instance occurred of the propriety of his 
conduct at Lacedaemon. The citizens received a letter 
from the Emperor Claudius, animadverting on the impro- 
per use they made of their liberty. This letter was writ- 
ten in consequence of some accusations which had been 
sent to the Emperor from the Proconsul of Greece. The 
Lacedaemonians, at a loss what to do, debated amongst 
themselves whether they should deprecate the wrath of 
Caesar, or send back a lofty answer. On this occasion 
they consulted Apollonius, who, when he found they were 
divided in opinion, came forward, and thus briefly address- 
ed 



228 

ed them : " Palamedes invented letters, to the end* men 
might know, not only what to write, but also what not to 
write." In this way he dissuaded the Lacedaemonians from 
shewing either too much audacity, or too much timidity 
in their reply. 



GHAP. XXXIV. ' 

APOLLONIUS staid some time at Sparta after the 
Olympic games; but as S3on as the winter was over he 
proceeded in the spring to Malea, with the design of pass- 
ing over to Rome. Whilst he was thinking of this jour- 
ney, he had the following dream, in which he thought he 
saw a woman, tall of stature and venerable in years, who 
embraced him, and requested him to visit her before he 
went to Italy. She said she was the nurse of Jupiter, and 
had on a garland, adorned with whatever sea or land pro- 
duces. After considering the meaning of this dream, he 
judged it proper to go into Crete, an island called the 
Nurse of Jupiter, because he was there educated; at the 
same time some other island might be possibly indicated 
by the garland. As many vessels happened to be stationed 
at Malea ready to put to sea, and all bound for Crete, 
he embarked in one which he supposed would be sufficient 



Blest be his shade in endless realms of light, 

Who bade the Alphabet dispel our night ; 

Those wond'rous symbols that can still retain 

The phantom forms that pass along the brain, 

O'er unsubstantial thought hold strong controul, 

Amffix the essence of the immortal soul. 

Man unreluetant meets the general doom, 

His mind embalm'd, defies th' o'erwhelming tomb, 

Lives in fresh vigour thro' succeeding years, 

Nor yields its powers whilst nature guides the spheres. 

The Press. 



I 



229 

for his whole community,* which consisted of his com- 
panions and their domestics, of whom he left not one be- 
hind. Sailing by the coast of Cydonia, he put in at 
Gnossus, where his companions expressed a desire of visit- 
ing the famous labyrinth in the neighbourhood, said to 
have been of old the habitation of the Minotaur. He 
allowed them to gratify thei%curiosity, but declined goiug 
himself, from the abhorrence he ever entertained of the 
injustice of Minos. Meanwhile he proceeded to Gortyna 
to visit Ida, whose summit he ascended, and examined all 
the sacred monuments of the place. He next visited the 
temple of Lebene, which is dedicated to JEsculapius ; and 
as all Asia visits Pergamos, so does all Crete visit the 
temple of Lebene, to which resort many people even from 
Libya. The temple looks towards the Libyan sea, stand- 
ing near Phaestus, a town where a great sea is restrained 
by a very little rock. This temple is called Lebenean, 
from a promontory of the same name running out from it 
in the shape of a lion, as we see a variety of figures re- 
presented by the accidental accumulation of stones. There 
is a story connected with this promontory which supposes 
it to have been one of the lions yoked of old to the cha- 
riot of Rhea. Whilst he was talking here about mid-day 
with a great concourse of people, assembled from motives 
of religion, a violent concussion of the earth shook the 
whole island, followed by a rumbling noise, proceeding 
not from the clouds, but from the ground ; in consequence 
of which the sea withdrew about seven stadia from the 
shore. Many people supposed, by this recession of the 
sea, that the temple and all belonging to it were swept 
away. But Apoilonius said, Don't be dismayed, for the 



* His visit to Crete was in imitation of Pythagoras, who whilst he 
was there went down into the ldaean Cave, with the Cretan Epimenides, 
the famous soothsayer. All things, says Pythagoras, are common 
amongst friends. 



230 

sea has brought forth land. Some imagined that he meant 
to say, that the elements were in harmony, and that the 
sea wonld make no encroachment on the land. But be- 
hold a few days after some travellers, who came from the 
province of Cydonia, said, that on the self- same day and 
hour in which the earthquake was felt, an island rose out 
of the sea, in the strait whjph runs between Thera and 
Crete.* However, to avoid all prolixity, let us pass to 
what he did at Rome, where he set sail as soon as he had 
performed his work in Crete. 



CHAP. XXXV. 

AT this time Nero gave no encouragement to the study of 
philosophy, whose professors he suspected of magic, and 
said, they used the name of philosophy as a cloak under 
which to practise their curious arts. The judges on the 
bench escaped not then the imputation of using the cloak 
of philosophy to hide the magic art. Without mentioning 
others, I cannot pass over Musonius, who, from being a 
Babylonian,*}- and considered second in wisdom to Apollo- 
nius, was cast intb prison, where he would have died, had 
he not possessed a robust constitution of body. Whilst 
philosophy and its professors were in such perilous cir- 
cumstances, Apollonius came to Rome. 



* This island, named Thia, appeared long before the time of Apol- 
lonius; which clearly shews that Philostratus had no other design than 
that of accommodating to the life of his hero all marvellous events 
whatever. 

t That is, says Olearius, from being a Chaldean, or a Magician. 
Magicians, in the imperial edicts, are always denominated divini and 
Chaldai. Chaldaean and Babylonian are the same. Tacitus speaks of 
a Musonius Rufus, a man devoted to the study of philosophy, and in 
particular to the doctrines of the stoic sect ; but whether he is the 
same with the Musonius in the text is doubtful. 



231 



CHAP. XXXVI. 

WHEN he arrived within a hundred and twenty stadia of 
Rome, he met Philolaus of Citium,* near the grove of 
Aricia,f a man of great eloquence, but not made for 
much suffering in times of persecution, for on the road lie 
advised every philosopher he met to follow his example. 
As soon as he saw Apollonius, he saluted him, and ex- 
horted him to give way to the storm, and not go to Rome, 
where philosophy lay under such odium. Whilst he was 
talking of the state of things there, he frequently turned 
about his head to see if any body was within hearing. 
You, said he, to Apollonius, are on your way to Rome, at- 
tended by a train of philosophers, a circumstance in itself 
liable to much animadversion. You know not the officers, 
who are appointed by Nero to take care of the city gates, 
who will probably apprehend you and them before you 
enter the town. But tell me, I pray thee, said Apollo- 
nius, how the emperor spends his timer In driving a cha- 
riot in open day, said Philolaus, in singing on the public 
stage, and living with gladiators, in whose company, be- 
ing enrolled as a member, he fights as a gladiator, and 
kills his man as well as the best. Can there, said Apollo- 
nius, interrupting him, be a greater sight presented to the 
eyes of liberal men, than that of seeing an emperor acting 
so unbecoming his high station ? for in the opinion of Pla- 
to, said he, li Man is the play-thing of the Gods," but an 
emperor making himself the play-thing of men, and for- 
getting every thing due to himself, what a subject of dis- 
course is it not capable of affording the philosopher ? So 
it would, said Philolaus, if it could be done without any 
risk. But if, said he, you continue your journey, and lose 



* Citium, a town of Crete. 

t Aricia, a town of Latimn, at the foot of the tlons Albanns, on the 
Appian way, at the distance of 1G0 stadia from Ryine. 



432 

your life by Nero's swallowing you up alive, without your 
ever enjoying such a sight, your gain will not be great: it 
will cost you more than ever it did Ulysses, when he fell 
into the hands of the Cyclops, for in order to see that 
monster, and such a bloody spectacle, he lost numbers of 
his companions. Act as you think right, said Philolaus; 
but let not your friends perish. With these words, uttered 
in a higher tone of voice, he fetched a deep sigh. 

CHAP. XXXVII. 

DAMIS, fearing lest the language of Philolaus should 
dishearten their young disciples, took Apollonius aside, 
and said, Conversations of this kind may do harm, from 
the terrors they excite. To this Apollonius said, Of all 
the favours which have fallen to my lot, unsolicited from 
the Gods, I consider this as one of the greatest, that has 
put it into my power to ascertain who of my friends are or 
are not truly attached to philosophy. Of those who were 
influenced by the discourse of Philolaus, some pretended 
sickness, others the want of all necessary provision for 
such a journey; some said domestic business prevented 
them, and others that they had unlucky dreams. And so 
his thirty and four companions, who set out with him on 
his journey, were at last reduced to eight, who alone were 
found faithful. The rest all fled, through fear of Nero 
and philosophy. 

CHAP. XXXVIII. 

THEN Apollonius assembling all his friends who remain- 
ed, amongst whom was Menippus, the favourite of the 
Empusa, Dioscorides the Egyptian, and Damis, said to 
them, I will not blame those who have left me, but I will 
praise you who have remained, because you are men like 
myself. I will not call the man a coward who has fled 
through fear of Nero ; but I will call him a philosopher 



£33 

who has conquered his fears, and I will teach him all I 
know. But first, it is our duty to thank the Gods, by 
whose assistance both we and they have been inspired with 
such sentiments ; and next, to solicit their direction and 
guidance on our journey, for without them we are nothing. 
We must go to the city which commands so much of the 
habitable earth. But how can any one approach it, unless 
guided by them ? especially at a time when a tyranny is 
established in it, of such a violent nature as suffers men 
not even to be philosophers. Let no one deem it fooliih 
in us to attempt going to a city from which so many philo- 
sophers have fled, for there is nothing in human affairs 
sufficient to terrify a wise man. No advancement or im- 
provement in any thing can be made without danger and 
toil. In the many journeys I have made, and no one has 
made more, I have seen the wild beasts of Arabia and 
India; but the wild beast, vulgarly called a tyrant, I know 
not the number of his heads, uor whether his claws are 
hooked, or his teeth sharp. He is more wild than the 
animals dwelling in woods and mountains. We know that 
lions and panthers, by gentle treatment, grow tame and 
change their natures ; but the wild beast called a tyrant, in 
proportion to the pains taken to tame it, becomes more 
savage than if left to itself, and tears to pieces every thing 
within its reach. Of all the wild beasts we read, was it 
ever known that any of them devoured its own mother ? 
Yet Nero gorged himself with such a feast. If foul deeds 
like this were perpetrated by Orestes and Alcmaeon, they 
had some pretext for their conduct in that of their fathers, 
of whom the one was murdered by his wife, and the other 
sold by his for a necklace. But Nero, after being adopted 
by the old Emperor, at the instigation of his mother, and 
made heir to the empire, he, I say, after such favours 
conferred, destroyed this very mother by an artificial ship- 
wreck, in a vessel built expressly for the purpose, wherein 



234 

she perished not far from the shore.* If, in consequence 
of such enormities, any person were to suppose Nero an 
object of terror, and for that reason to abandon philosophy 
through fear of opposing his inclination, I would let him 
know that nothing is terrible to men who have made the 
maxims of temperance and wisdom tlie rules of their 
lives; for they are favoured by the Gods, and all they can 
suffer from such as despise them is, to be reckoned like 
unto the actions of men drunk with wine, who are in truth 
mad, but not formidable. We will go to Rome, if our 
courage does not sink through fear. To Nero's edict, ba- 
nishing philosophy, let us oppose the Iambic of Sophocles, 
" Such orders were never given by the father of the Gods" 
— nor by the Muses, I will add ; nor by Apollo, the God 
of Wisdom. It is probable the Emperor himself knows 
this Iambic, as he is said to take great delight in tragedy. 
On this occasion were verified the words of Homer,*f* who 
says, that as the warriors became all like one helmet and 
one shield, when roused and animated by the force of elo- 
quence, so were our philosophers united by the words of 
Apollonius. They were ready to lay down their lives for 
the sake of philosophy, and shewed themselves much su- 
perior to the men who run away. 



CHAP. XXXIX. 

OUR travellers now drew near the city gates, through 
which they passed without being asked any questions by 
the guards, who admired the singularity of their dress, 



* The account given by Tacitus and Suetonius is different from this, 
and consequently is more to be relied on. 

t " Spear crouded spear, 

Shield, helmet, man, press'd helmet, man, and shield — " 

Cowper. Homer. 



<235 

which excited both their attention and wonder. Its fashion 
was religious, and unlike that worn by common quacks 
and mountebanks. On entering the city, they withdrew 
to a public inn near the gates; and whilst sitting at a late 
meal, a man in a state of intoxication fell into their com- 
pany, who had a voice not at ail unpleasing. This man 
used to visit the several quarters of the city, and sing the 
verses of Nero, for which a certain salary was paid him. 
He had power to arraign all as traitors who listened not 
with attention, or who did not pay him for what they 
heard. He possessed a harp, and all the requisites for 
playing on it, together with a little box, wherein was a 
string, much worn, which formerly belonged to Nero. 
This, he said, . cost him two minae, with which he would 
never part, except to a performer of the first talents, or to 
him who had won one prize at the Pythian Games. His 
custom was to begin with a prelude, in which he sung a 
short hymn in praise of Nero: then other verses were 
added, partly from the Orestea and Antigone,* and partly 
from other tragedies of Nero's own composing; such 
songs as Nero made sad discord of, he sung with suitable 
variations. Finding that little or no attention was paid 
him by Apollonius and his companions, he cried out, they 
violated the majesty of Nero, and were the enemies of his 
divine voice, at which our philosophers seemed not much 
concerned. Whereupon Menippus asked Apollonius his 
opinion of what the perfomier said. The same, replied 
Apollonius, as of what he sung. But it is not our busi- 
ness, Menippus, to shew any signs of dissatisfaction : let 
us pay him for his music, and leave him to sacrifice to die 
Muses of Nero. Such was the specimen given by this 
wretched harper of gross adulation and meanness. 



* From the words in the text it may be inferred, that the Orestea 
and Antigone were compositions of Nero. 



236 



CHAP. XL. 

AS soon as it was day, Telesinus, one of the consuls,* 
sending for Apollonius, asked him why he wore such a 
peculiar dress? Because, replied he, it is pure, and not 
taken from any living creature. The Consul next asked, 
But what is the wisdom you possess ? It is, said Apollo- 
nius, a divine instinct, which teaches what prayers and 
sacrifices are most proper to be made to the Gods. Is 
there any philosopher, replied Telesinus, who is ignorant 
of this ? Very many, said he ; and if any man is well in- 
formed in these things, he will receive great advantage by 
knowing from one wiser than himself, that what he knows, 
he knows well. When Telesinus (whose mind was more 
than usual attached to religious worship) heard what he 
said, it immediately occurred to him that he was the man 
of whom public fame had spoken so much ; but at present 
he declined asking his name, from apprehending it might 
be his wish to conceal it. Telesinus then returning to re- 
ligious subjects, in which he was well versed, addressed 
Apollonius as a sage, and said, What do you pray for 
when you approach the altars ? That justice may prevail, 
said Apollonius ; that the laws may not be broken; that 
wise men may be poor, and the rest of mankind rich, but 
not by fraud. What, said Telesinus, do you think that by 
asking you will obtain such great things? Yes, I do, said 
he ; for when I approach the altars, I include every request 
in one prayer, and thus address the Gods: " Grant, O 
ye Gods, all that is convenient for me." So that if the 
Gods rank me in the number of the good, I hope to ob- 



* In the reign of Domitian, he chose rather to retire from his native 
country as a philosopher, than to maintain his dignity there by re- 
nouncing that profession. 



237 

tain more than what 1 ask; but if they number me with 
the wicked, I know the contrary to what I ask will be 
given; and I will not accuse the Gods forjudging me un- 
deserving of their favours on account of my demerits. At 
hearing this, Telesinus was amazed ; but being desirous of 
shewing liim every mark of respect, he said, Be it lawful 
for you to enter all the temples ; 1 will write to the priest* 
to receive you, and submit to your superior orders. What, 
said Apollonius, would they not receive me without your 
written commands ? No, said he, for the permission de- 
pends on my situation as Pontifex Maximus. I am glad, 
said Apollonius, a man so illustrious is appointed to fill 
that office ; at the same time I wish you to know from me, 
that I would prefer dwelling in temples which are not so 
vigilantly guarded. None of the Gods reject me, and all 
give me the protection of their roof. This is all the per- 
mission I crave, and which is not denied me by the bar- 
barians. If that is so, said Telesinus, the barbarians have 
been beforehand with us in such a praise-worthy attention ; 
for I wished it said of ourselves. After this Apollonius 
took up his abode in the temples, aud in none he dwelt 
without making some reformation. In this way he passed 
from temple to temple, which gave rise to some animad- 
versions, which he explained by saying, The Gods them- 
selves do not always dwell in the heavens ; they visit ./Ethi- 
opia and Olympus in turns, and sometimes mount Athos. 
If the Gods condescend to visit all nations, would it not 
be an incongruity in men not visiting all the Gods ? But 
no one will blame masters if they neglect their slaves ; for 
it is not probable they would be so treated undeservedly. 
But slaves who do not respect their masters, deserve from 
them the severest treatment, which is that of being cast 
away as accursed, and odious to the Gods. 



238 



CHAP. XLI. 



WHILST ApoHonius instructed persons in the temples, 
the people were more attentive to the public worship; and 
the temples he frequented were most crouded, because in 
them the worshippers expected greater favours from the 
Gods than in the others; to which may be added, that 
what he said was less liable to be misrepresented on ac- 
count of its publicity. He visited in person no man, nor 
ever paid his court to the great and powerful. He receiv- 
ed all who came to him with civility, and what he sajd to 
them he said to all the world. 



CHAP. XLII. 

ABOUT this time Demetrius, who loved ApoHonius (as 
was noticed in what passed at Corinth) came to Rome, 
and shewed him so much attention, that Nero was pro- 
voked by it, and began to suspect that the art which Apol- 
lonius professed, caused the intimacy. It was apprehend- 
ed ApoHonius encouraged him to act as lie did, for after 
Nero finished his gymnasium, which was the admiration of 
Rome, and celebrated the anniversary of it in the midst of 
the senate, and the knights assembled, and performed all 
the necessary sacrifices on the occasion, Demetrius enter- 
ed it, and pronounced an oration against all who bathed 
in it,* saying they were effeminate ; and polluters, not 
cleansers of themselves ; to which he added, that the ex- 



* There was a hot bath joined to the gymnasium, after the fashion 
of the Greeks, and this appears from Suetonius, who says, " Upon the 
first opening of a hot bath, and a school of exercise (Gymnasium) 
which Nero built, he furnished the senate, and the equestrian order 
with oil. 



239 

pense attending such works was idle, and superfluous. 
These words would have cost him his life, had not Nero 
outdone himself that day in singing. It was in a tavern 
near the gymnasium, in which he sung with only a girdle 
tied round his waist, but in every other respect was as 
naked as one of the lowest attendants of the place. Yet 
Demetrius incurred all the danger of what he said, for 
Tigellinus,* to whom the sword of Rome was committed, 
banished him from the city, just as if he had demolished 
the baths by his harangue. 



CHAP. XLIII. 

ALL the time Apollonius staid in Rome, Tigellinus kept 
a vigilaut, but silent eye over him, and observed all he said, 
whether it was reprehensible or not. Apollonius took 
care not to indulge in any unbecoming license of speech, 
nor yet to shew a too solicitous concern like persons ever 
on the \\atch. He said what he thought sufficient on the 
common topics of the day, and talked with Telesinus on 
philosophical subjects, and with others, who conceived 
they run no risk, though philosophy stood on the most 
slippery grounds. However, he had fallen under a suspicion 
as I have said, which was not diminished by the observa- 
tions made on the subject of a prodigy. It happened to 
thunder during an eclipse of the sun, an occurrence 
which never takes place at such a time. Apollonius lift- 



* Tigellinus was celebrated for his intrigues and perfidy in the court 
of Nero. — He was appointed judge at the trial of the conspirators who 
had leagued against Nero, for which he was liberally rewarded with 
triumphal honours. — He afterwards betrayed the emperor, and was 
ordered to destroy himself. Tacitus says, he corrupted Nero at first, 
and then deserted him, " ac postremo ejusdem desertor ac proditor." 
Tacitus has given his character with his accustomed strength and 
brevity,— History, b. i. c. 72. 



240 

ing up his eyes to heaven said, A great event shall or 
shall not happen.* They, who heard these words, were 
unable to comprehend their meaning, but three days after 
the eclipse, all understood them. For whilst Nero was 
at supper, a thunderbolt fell on the table where he sat,+ 
which broke the cup in his hand as he was raising it to his 
mouth. The danger he run of being killed by it was sig- 
nified by Apollonius when he said, a great event shal or 
shall not happen. Great fear seized on Tigellinus when he 
heard this, from supposing Apollonius deeply skilled in 
divine things. He thought it wise, however, not to take 
any notice of it, lest some secret harm might befall him. 
He still continued to have him well watched by all those 
eyes, which are ever at the beck of sovereign power ; for 
whether he talked, or held his tongue, or walked, or did 
not ; whether he eat alone, or in company, or sacrificed, 
or did not ; all and every thing was reported to him. 



CHAP. XLIV. 

A DISTEMPER at this time became prevalent in Rome, 
which the physicians termed a catarrh. It was attended 
with a cough, and great difficulty in breathing. In conse- 
quence of a swelling in Nero's throat, and a hoarseness 
in his voice, the temples were crouded with votaries ofFer- 



* Cautious and circumspect enough, to keep himself from being inva- 
lidated as a prophet. " II est important de ne point parler clairement, 
on finit tdt ou tard par passer pour prophete." 

t I find no account of this in history. In the close of the year, says 
the writers of the Universal History, the heads and mouths of the po- 
pulace were filled with prodigies, asserted to have happened, and 
always looked upon as the forerunners of some dreadful calamity. 
Suetonius says, a blazing star appeared above the horizon several nights 
•uccessively, which is vulgarly supposed to portend destruction to 
kings and princes. 



241 

ing up their prayers to the Gods for his recovery. Apol- 
lonius was greatly vexed at this madness of the people, yet 
no man was rebuked by him in public. He even persuad- 
ed Menippus to restrain his indignation, by telling him 
that the Gods were to be forgiven, if they took pleasure 
in the company of buffoons and jesters. These words 
were carried to Tigellinus, who sent immediately to have 
him arrested, and brought before him to answer the charge 
of high treasou. An informer, well-instructed, came for- 
ward, who had been the ruin of many, one who was full 
of such kind of Olympic victories. He held in his hand a 
roll wherein was written the accusation, which he flourish- 
ed about him like a sword before the eyes of Apollonius, 
boasting he had given it a sharp edge, and that now his 
hour was come. Upon this, Tigellinus unfolded the roll, 
when lo and behold, neither letter nor character was to be 
seen :* which made all think the man was a demon. This 
was the opinion which Domitian some time after enter- 
tained of him. When Tigellinus saw this, he took Apollo- 
nius into a more secret part of the court, where the most 
solemn business was transacted ; and making the people 
withdraw, he asked him who he was ? Apollonius told 
him his own name, and that of his father, and his country ; 
and the use he made of philosophy, which was to know 
both Gods and men ; but that to know oneself, he 
said, was the most difficult of all things. But, in 
what way, said Tigelliims, do you discover demons, and 
the apparitions of spectres? Just as I do homicides and 
impious men, replied Apollonius ; and this he said in sar- 
castic allusion to Tigelliuus, who countenanced and encou* 
raged Nero in all his cruelty and debauchery. Tigellinus 
continued, will you prophesy for me, Apollonius, if I ask 
it? How can I, said he, who am no soothsayer? But, 
returned Tigellinus, we are told you are the man who said, 



• Credat qui vult. 
1? 



242 

that a great event would, or would not take place. You 
heard only the truth, said Apollonius : but it is not to be 
attributed to the art of divination: it is to be rather ascrib- 
ed to that wisdom which Jupiter makes manifest to the 
wise. How comes it to pass, said Tigellinus, that you do 
not fear Nero ?, Because, answered he, the same deity 
who has made him formidable, has made me bold. Pray 
what do you think of the emperor ? I think better of him 
than you do : for you think he ought to sing, and I think 
he ought to hold his tongue. Tigellinus, being struck 
with these words, said, Go where you please, only giving 
security for your appearance when required. But who, 
replied Apollonius, can go bail for that, which cannot be 
bound ? All these things appeared in the eyes of Tigelli- 
nus divine, and above human power : and to shew he did 
not wish to contend with a God, he bid him go where he 
pleased, as he was too strong to be subject to his autho- 
rity.* 

CHAP. XLV. 

WHAT I am going to relate is set down among the mar- 
vellous acts of Apollonius. A girl on the point of being 
married, seemingly died, whose bier was followed by him 
who was to have been her husband, in all the affliction 
usual in like cases of interrupted wedlock. As she hap- 
pened to be of a consular family, all Rome condoled with 
him. Apollonius, meeting the funeral procession, said to 
the attendants, set down the bier, and I will dry up the 
tears which you are shedding for the maid, whose name he 
inquired after. Almost all the spectators present thought 



* J'ai rapport^ cet entretien de Tigillin et D'Apollone pour faire 
voir qu'il n'y avoit dans Apollone que de la hardiesse et de la vanite 
qui le soutenoient dans les occasions les plus perilleuses. Du Pin, 



243 

he was going to pronounce a funeral oration like what is 
done on such occasions to excite compassion. But all he 
did was, to touch the maid, and after uttering a few words 
over her in a low tone of voice, he wakened her from that 
death with which she seemed to be overcome. * She im- 
mediately began to speak, and returned to her father's house, 
as Alcestis did of old, when recalled to life by Hercules. 
The relations of the girl presented Apollonius with an hun- 
dred and fifty thousand drachmas, which he in return begged 
to settle on her, as a marriage-portion. It is as difficult to 
me as it was to all who were present, to ascertain whether 
Apollonius discovered the vital spark, which had escaped 
the faculty, (for it is said, it rained at the time, which 
caused a vapour to rise from her face) or whether he che- 
rished and brought back to life the soul, which to all ap- 
pearance was extinct. 

CHAP. XLVI. 

AT this time Nero cast into prison Musonius, who excelled 
most others in philosophy. During his confinement, he 



* This is the only instance that looks like a miraculous resurrection, 
on which Eusebius's remark, as quoted by Lardner, is very pertinent, 
who says, as it was not credited by Philostratus himself, we need not 
much mind it: for in reasoning about it, he supposeth that there were 
some remains of hfe, the maid still breathing, and having a dew of 
sweat upon her face : and moreover, as this is said to have happened at 
Rome, if it had been true, it would have come to the knowledge of 
the Emperor, and his courtiers, and to the philosopher Euphrates, 
then at Rome ; and would have beeu particularly taken notice of, 
either in favour of Apollonius, or to his disadvantage, neither of which 
happened. But granting it true, I would ask, cui bono was such a vio- 
lation of the established laws of nature ? besides, the whole credit due 
to it, is ultimately to be resolved into the credit of one man. 

Thr wife of Admetus, King of Thessaly. who being sick, sent to 
the oracle, and was answered that he must needs die, unless one of his 
friends would die for him — they all refused, and then she voluntarily 
submitted to die for him. Accordiug to some authors Hercules brought 
her back from hell. R 2 



244 

deprecated all intercourse with Apollonius, lest it might 
endanger both. What correspondence they had was car- 
ried on through the medium of Menippus and Damis, 
who had free access to the prison. Omitting such epistles 
as were of little or no moment, we will only notice the 
most interesting, in which may be found whatever is most 
important. 

1 . " Apollonius to Musonius the philosopher, 

greeting. 

" I wish to go to you, and enjoy your conversation and 

roof. — I wish to be in some way or other useful to you. — ■ 

If you doubt not that Hercules delivered Theseus from the 

shades, write your pleasure. Farewel.t 

A 

2. " Musonius to Apollonius the philosopher. 

" Your proposal is worthy of all praise. But, the man 
who is able to clear himself, and prove he is guilty of no 
crime, will deliver himself. Farewell 

3. " Apollonius to Musonius the philosopher. 

" Socrates the Athenian refused being delivered by his 
friends ; he was guilty of no crime cognizable by the court 
which tried him : yet he died. Farewel." 

4. " Musonius to Apollonius the philosopher. 

" Socrates died because he did not defend himself : but 
I will defend myself. Farewel X 

CHAP. XLVII. 

WHEN Nero was setting out for Greece, he published 
an edict, forbidding the philosophers to remain in Rome.* 



* This Decree, according to Olearius, was made before the month 
of November, in the year of Christ 66. — For he says, it appears from 
Josep.i us , . th at Nero was in that month in Achaia. 



i 



245 

Whereupon, Apollonius determined to visit the western 
parts of the world, said to be bounded by the pillars of 
Hercules. He wished to see the ebbing and flowing of 
the ocean, and Gades, of the philosophy of whose inhabi- 
tants he heard that it almost approached divine wisdom. 
All his friends accompanied him, praising not only his re- 
solution, but the object of the journey. 



BOOK V. —Contents. 

Apollonius visits the Pillars of Hercules — Particulars of 
his Voyage from Gades to Egypt — Stays some time 
at Alexandria — Meets Vespasian there — Conversa- 
tion with him on the State of Public Affairs — Mis* 
understanding between him and Euphrates. 



CHAP. I. 

OF the pillars, which are said to have been fixed by Her- 
cules as the boundaries of the earth, I shall pass over all 
that is fabulous, and confine myself only to what is worth 
being related. The two promontories of Europe and 
Asia, distant from each other about sixty stadia,* form the 
straitj-f- through which, the ocean, (whereby, is understood 
the Mediterranean) is carried into the outer sea. The 
promontory of Africa is called Abinna.J The heights of 
this mountain abound in lions; on the land side, it extends 
till it limits the Getulians§ and Tingitanians, two nations 
whose manners are savage, and African. In sailing into 
the Mediterranean, this mountain runs about ninety stadia, 



* Sixty stadia, (taking the stadium on an average at 500 feet) make 
but five miles and three quarters. 

t The narrow sea then opens, and the mountains Abila and Calpe, 
make the coasts of Europe and Africa appear nearer to each other 
than in reality they are; both these jmountains indeed, but Calpe more 
particularly, stretch themselves toward the sea. Pomp. Mela. 

X More commonly called Abyla, or Abila, a mountain of Africa in 
that part which is nearest to the opposite mountain, called Calpe, on 
the coast of Spain, only 18 miles distant. Lempriere. 

§ Mauritania Tingitana, is the province immediately bordering on 
Abinna, (of which .Tingis, now Tangier, is the capital) adjoining to 
said province on the east lies Getulia. 






247 

as far as the river Salex ;* how much farther is not easy to 
conjecture, because, beyond it the country becomes uncul- 
tivated, and uninhabitable. The European promontory is 
called Calpis, which extends sixf hundred stadia on the 
right, as you sail into the outer sea, and ends at the ancient 
Gades.J ( 



CHAP. IT. 

I HAVE seen myself among the Celtae, the ebbing and 
flowing of the ocean,^ which corresponds exactly with the 
common opinion. Having often considered the cause of 
this phenomenon, namely, the flux and reflux of such a 
body of waters, I am of opinion Apollonius has discovered 
its true origin. In one of his epistles, written to the In- 
dians, he says, The ocean moved underneath, by winds 
blowing from the many caverns which the earth has form- 
ed on every side of it, puts forth its waters, and draws 



* Salex, of which river I can find no account. 

t Cadiz, according to modern geographers, lies forty-five miles from 
Gibraltar. — Taking the stadium at 500 feet, the distance will be ac- 
cording to onr author about 56 English miles. 

t Called by Philostratus Gadeira — from its Phenician name Gadir, 
which Pliny says, signifies a hedge. Strabo says, it was founded by 
a colony from Tyre. Gadir properly signifies an inclosure, or spot of 
ground separated from all other tracts, as this island was by the sea. 

§ Olearius supposes it must have been at Massilia, now Marseilles, 
where this ebbing and flowing of the ocean was seen by our author, 
for in no part of the Mediterranean is that phenomenon so conspicu- 
ous : yet Massilia is in Gallia Narbonenses, not Celtica. This circum- 
stance renders the conjecture of Olearius doubtful. By Celtae, here, 
I suppose our author understood Celtiberians, or inhabitants of Celti- 
beria, or Spain in general ; for the Celtes, after passing over the Pyre- 
nean mountains, took the name of Celtiberians from the name Iberia, 
or lber, in the old Celtic or Teutonic, signifying over— consequently the 
ebbing and flowing alluded to, might have been on any part of the 
western coast of Spain. 



248 

them in again, as is the case of the breath in respiration. 
This opinion is corroborated, he adds, by the account he 
received of the sick at Gades. # For at the time of the 
flowing of the tide, the breath never leaves the dying man, 
which would not happen if the tide did not supply the 
earth with a portion of air sufficient to produce this effect. 
All the phases of the moon during the increase, fullness, 
and wane, are to be observed in the sea. Hence it comes 
to pass, that the ocean follows the changes of the moon, 
by increasing and decreasing with it. 



CHAP. III. 

AMONG the Celtae, night and day gradually succeed each 
other ; darkness giving place to light, and light to dark- 
ness, as at Rome. About Gades and the pillars, both 
burst suddenly^ on the sight with the velocity of lightning. 
The fortunate islesj are comprised within the limits of 
Africa, and not far from a promontory, which is uninha- 
bitable. Gades is situate in Europe. 

CHAP. IV. 

THE people inhabiting these countries are very supersti- 
tious in matters of religion. They have erected an altar 



* So little, says Posidonius, did the inhabitants of Boetica know of 
physic, that they used, like the Lusitani, to lay their sick relations 
along the public streets and roads, to have the advice of such passen- 
gers as could give it to them, and peihaps, that they might enjoy bet- 
ter the supposed advantage of the flowing of the tide, as mentioned in, 
the text. 

t Without any previous twilight. 

t Fortunatae Insula?— now called Canaries — they are seven in num- 
ber, situated in the same parallel with the southern parte of Mauri- 
tania. 



249 

to old agej* and are the only people known who sing 
hymns in honour of death. f Even art and poverty J have 
altars with them, as Hercules of Egypt lias with some, 
and Hercules of Thebes with others. The latter is said 
to have penetrated into Erythia,§ in the vicinity of Gades, 
from which he carried away Geryon, and his oxen ; and 
the former, who was much addicted to science, traversed 
the whole earth. The inhabitants of Gades are said to 
be bv descent Greeks, and are instructed in our customs. 
They honour the Athenians above all the Greeks, and of- 
fer sacrifices to Menestheus,|| King of Athens. In conse- 
quence of their veneration for the character of Themis- 
tocles, who commanded the Athenian fleet, they have 
raised to him a statue of brass, which seemed to breathe, 
and which they approach as an oracle. 

CHAP. V. 

HERE they saw trees not to be found in any other coun- 
try, called geryonea?, ## of which, two were growing on a 

* The Ronans divided the life of man into two ages rather than four 
— Youth, Juventa — and old age, Senectus, of both these the poets in 
the Augustan age, spoke in a manner which plainly shewed that they 
were received as personages and deities in their religion. Spence. 

t Death and sleep are placed by Virgil among the evil beings of 
hell. 

X Poverty, Penia, a Goddess whom Aristophanes describes in his 
play of Plutus, was held in high veneration by the people of Gades, 
from an idea that she was the inventress of arts, by her power of 
quickening the industry, and calling forth the genius of men. 

§ Erythia, an island adjoining, according to the ancients, either to, 
or a part of, Gades, no where now to be found by the description 
given of it by ancient authors. The island on which Gades stands, 
was called Erythraa by some people, who came witn HenuJes from the 
Red Sea, who, with the approbation of their leader, Hercules, made 
a settlement there. 

l| On one of the mouths of the river Bcetis, Menestheus, the Athenian, 
built a city of his own name, and a temple between the two branches, 
which was called Oraculum Menestheum. 

** Pausanias says, there is not any sepulchre extant of Geryon at 

Gailes, 



Q.50 

tumulus, raised over the body of Geryon. The geryonea 
is a species of the pine, and pitch-tree, and drops blood 
as the Heliad poplar does gold. The island,* in which is 
the temple,f does not exceed in dimensions the temple it- 
self : not a stone appears in it, but the whole looks like 
the most polished surface. In this temple, two Herculeses 
are worshipped without having statues erected to them. 
The Egyptian Hercules has two brazen altars without in- 
scriptions, the Theban but one. Here we saw engraved 
in stone the Hydra, and Diomed's mares, and the twelve 
labours of Hercules, together with the golden olive of 
Pygmalionj: wrought with exquisite skill, and placed here 
no less on account of the beauty of its branches, than on 
that of its fruit, which appeared as if real, growing out 
of an emerald. Besides the above, the golden belt of the 
Telamonian Teucer§ was shewn them. But why, or 
wherefore he crossed the Mediterranean, neither Damis 
knew himself, nor could learn from the natives of the 
country. The pillars in the temple were composed of 
gold and silver, and so nicely blended were the metals, 



Gades, and that nothing but a tree remains, endowed with a variety of 
forms. The account in the text is doubtless entirely fabulous, [as well 
as that of Pausanias's multiform tree. 

* Erythia.— 

t The Phenicians, says Sir Isaac Newton, after the death of Mel- 
cartus, (a name given by the people of Tyre to Hercules) built a tem- 
ple to him in the island Gades, and adorned it with the sculptures of 
the labours of Hercules, and of his hydra, and the horses, to whom 
he threw Diomedes, king of the Bistones in Thrace, to be devoured. 
In this temple was the golden belt of Teucer, and the golden olive of 
Pygmalion, bearing Smaragdine fruit ; and by these consecrated gifts 
of Teucer and Pygmalion, you may know that it was built in their 
days. 

t This splendid gift of Pygmalion, exhibits, says Mr. Maurice, a cu- 
rious proof of the early skill of the Phenicians in working metals and 
gems. 

§ We are to understand here the belt, from which Teucer was sir- 
named the Telamonian, tsx^wv vinculum, Balteus. 



351 

as to form but one colour. They were more than a cubit 
high, of a quadrangular form, like anvils, whose capitals 
were inscribed with characters neither Egyptian, nor In- 
dian, nor such as could be decyphered.* As the priests 
themselves, could give no explanation of them, Apollonius 
said, the Egyptian Hercules-j- will no longer suffer me to 
be silent. These pillarsj are the chains, which bind to- 
gether the earth and sea, the inscriptions on them were 
executed by Hercules in the house of the Parcae, to pre- 
vent discord arising among the elements, and that friend- 
ship being interrupted which they have for each other. 



CHAP. VI. 

OUR travellers sailed up the river Baetis,§ in doing which 
they found that the nature of the river contributed much 
to discover the nature of the ebbing and flowing of the 
sea. For at the time of the flowing of the tide, the river 
returns to its source by means of a wind, which repels it 



* The characters were Phenician, of which many monuments give 
at this day evident proof. 

t It is supposed, that the Egyptian Hercules, as well as the Theban, 
that is, the Phenician, who were worshipped in the same temple with- 
out having statues erected to either of tliem ; and which temple was 
adorned with the twelve labours of Hercules, were the same per- 
son. 

X This is noticed in Arpe's treatise of the rise and progress of the 
talismanic art, in these words — " In Hispania erant Herculis columnas 
terrarum Occanique vincula, quae Hercules domui Parcarum inscrip- 
serat, ne qua dementis contentio sit, neque amicitiam laedant." 

The two pillars, says Banier, in his mythology, were looked on by 
the antients as two talismans, that had influence to stop the fores of 
the elements. — It was, undoubtedly, adds he, the antient Phenician 
characters engraved upon them, and which were not understood, that 
gave rise to the fable. 

§ A river of Spain, from which a part of the country has received 
the name of Bcetica. It is now called the Guadalquiver. 



252 

from the sea. The country, called Boetica, # derives its 
name from the river, and is esteemed most fertile. In it 
are well-built towns, rich pasture, and tillage grounds, all 
watered by the Bcetis,f and besides, is possessed of suck 
a climate as is at Athens in the autumn, and at the time of 
the celebration of the mysteries. 



CHAP. VII. 

OF such discourses as Apollonius held on most subjects, 
whilst in this country, Damis says, he has preserved only 
what were most worthy of notice. One day, when Apol- 
lonius and his companions were sitting in the temple of 
Hercules, Menippus happening to smile on the name of 
Nero being mentioned, said, what shall we think, my 
friends, of that good emperor ?J Are there any contests, 
in which we can give him the merit of deserving a crown ? 
Do not you think the Greeks must die with laughter, when 
they see him enter the lists ? To this Apollonius said, 
I have heard from Telesinus, that the excellent Nero fears 
being flogged by the Eleans. When his flatterers exhort- 
ed him to conquer at the Olympic Games, and have pro- 
clamation made of it at Rome by the voice of the com- 



* Celebrated by ancient authors, under the name of Tharsis. Eze- 
kiel the prophet in treating of the rich supply of Tyre, says, " Tar- 
shish was thy merchants, by reason of the multitude of all kind of 
riches; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded in thy fairs/' 

t Fair Boetes j olives wreathe thy azure locks, 

In fleecy gold thou cloth'st thy neighb'ring flocks : 

Thy fruitful banks with rival bounty smile, 

While Bacchus wine bestows, and Pallas oil. 

Martial. 

$ See Suetonius passim for various specimens of Nero's unheard of 
follies, and wild extravagancies. 



253 

mon herald, he said, But what if the Eleans should chas- 
tise me ? For, I am informed, they scourge with rods, 
and take more upon themselves than I do myself. These, 
with many other greater impertinences he used to utter. 
For my own part, said Apollonius, I suppose he will con- 
quer at Olympia, for who would be so fool-hardy as to 
contend with him ? But he will never conquer at the 
Olympic Games, celebrated after their due and legal man- 
ner. For, when by the law of Greece, the Olympic 
Games should have been solemnized last year, Nero order- 
ed them to be adjourned till he "came himself, as if the sa- 
crifices on the occasion were to be offered to him, and 
not to Jupiter. What will you say to his announcing the 
exhibition of tragedies, and the music of the harp, to a 
people who had neither stage nor scenic decorations fit 
for their celebration ; but only a stadium that nature afford- 
ed, and naked sports ? And what shall we think of his 
seeking victory from what ought to be hidden in darkness ? 
And of his laying aside the royal robe of Augustus and 
Julius, and putting on that of Amcebeus and Terpnus ?* 
What of his piquing himself to express distinctly the exact 
words of Creon and CEdipus, and at the same time of 
dreading the smallest mistake in going out of one door 
rather than another, or in wearing this or that habit, or 
in the manner of moving his sceptre? What are we to 
think of his departing so far from his own dignity, and 
that of the Roman people, as to thrill notes of music, in- 
stead of making laws for the regulation of morals ? and 
what of his acting the part of a buffoon at a distance from 
that city wherein he ought to reside as sovereign, dispens- 



* Two celebrated musicians, who framed to the harp many a Ro- 
man ditty. — As soon as Nero became Emperor, he sent for the harper 
Terp».us, by whose side he used to sit whilst he played after supper, 
until late at night. Suetonius. 

But no music had charms to soothe the savageness of his nature. 



254 

jng the fates of land and sea ? There are many tragedians, 
Menippus, amongst whom he wishes to have his name en- 
rolled. But what would be thought of an actor, if after 
having appeared in the character of CEnomaus, or Cres- 
phontes, he should, on quitting the stage, be so impressed 
with the idea of the part he, represented, as to wish to 
rule over others, and act the tyrant? What opinion, I 
say, would be formed of him ? Would not a dose of 
hellebore, or some other medical preparation be necessa- 
ry for purging his mind ? But let us suppose the prince 
himself was to turn tragedian, or strolling player, and 
modulate his voice through fear of offending the ears of the 
Eleans and Delphians ; or suppose he was, from having 
no fears of them, to act his part so ill as to subject him- 
self to the chastisement of his own subjects, what opinion 
would you form of the miserable men who lived under 
such an abomination ? Who appears, think you, O Me- 
nippus! most reprehensible in the eyes of the Greeks, 
Xerxes laying all things waste with fire and sword, or 
Nero humming a song ? For if the expense - be taken in- 
to consideration, which his singing costs the country, the 
numbers of people turned out of their dwellings, the un- 
certain possession of all that is valuable in domestic pro- 
perty ; the numerous sufferings endured by wives and 
daughters, all of whom are taken to gratify his infamous 
passions, to which, if is added, the thousand accusations 
springing from the aforesaid causes, with the others to be 
omitted, as for instance, You, Sir, have not been to hear 
Nero, or, You attended, but did not listen with attention: 
You, Sir, laughed, or did not applaud : You, Sir, offer- 
ed no sacrifice for the improvement of the emperor's voice, 
that it might be clearer than that of the Pythian pro- 
phetess at Delphi. When, I say, you consider all these 
things, you will not differ with me in thinking that Greece 
has many Iliads of woe, of which to complain. For as 
to his cutting, or not cutting through the Isthmus, or whe- 



tlier at present, he is, or is not employed in it, matters 
not, for I have long foreseen the consequence by the sug- 
gestions of a God. But sure, said JDamis, the idea of 
cutting through the Isthmus, far exceeds all his other en- 
terprises. You must see yourself, what an undertaking 
it is. I do, said Apollonius ; but then, the not finishing 
what he has begun w ill add nothing to his glory, for it will 
appear to all the world that he digs as ill as he sings.* In 
reviewing the actions of Xerxes I commend the man ; not 
for having joined the Hellespont by a bridge ; but for his 
having passed over it. Nero, 1 plainly see, will never 
sail through the Isthmus, nor finish what he is about. If 
there is truth in man, 1 think he will quit Greece in terror 
and dismay.f 



CHAP. VIII. 

AFTER this, a messenger arrived at Gades with dis- 
patches from government, ordering sacrifices to be offered 
for the good news of Nero having been three times con- 
queror at the Olympic Games. The people of Gades un- 
derstood the news of the messenger from what they re- 
membered of Arcadia, &c. and from being as I have be- 
fore said, zealous imitators of the Greeks. But the adja- 
cent towns knew nothing of Olympia nor its games, nor 
its contests, nor why they should sacrifice on such an oc- 
casion. In consequence of their ignorance, they run into 
very ridiculous mistakes, supposing that some military ex- 
ploit had been achieved ; and that Nero had conquered a 
people called Olympians. In all their lives they had never 



* Suetonius says, his voice was naturally neither loud, nor clear, 
t On his returning from Greece, he heard at Naples of some dis- 
turbances having arisen in Gaul under the auspices of Julius Vindex, 



256 

seen the representation of a tragedy, nor a performance 
on the harp. 

CHAP. IX. 

DAMIS thinks the manner in which the people of His- 
palis*, a town in the province of Boetica, were affected at 
the sight of a certain tragedian's coming among them, 
worth noticing. This actor arrived at the time when sa- 
crifices (then common in Spain) were announced for some 
victories gained at the Pythian games, and was now stroll- 
ing up and down the country after having declined enter- 
ing the lists with Nero. This man made the most of his 
theatrical talents, and among people who were not altoge- 
ther barbarous, excited much wonder and speculation, first 
from their never having heard of a tragedy, and next from 
his giving out, that he imitated exactly Nero's peculiar 
style in singing. On his coming to Hispalis, he surpris- 
ed the natives by his manner of standing on the stage with- 
out uttering \i word. But when he strutted along, with his 
mouth wide open, elevated on lofty buskins, and trailing 
after him a pompous robe ; they were indeed astonished. 
At length, when he began to declaim aloud, they ran ' 
away in terrors as if frightened out of their wits by some 
demon. Such was the simplicity of manners which then 
prevailed amongst the barbarians of these parts. 



CHAP. X. 

THE governor of the province of Boetica frequently ap- 
plied to Apolionius for a conference, who replied, that his 



* An ancient town on the Bcetis, which is navigable quite up to it 
for ships of burthen, and thence to Corduba, for river-barges. It had a 
conventus juridicus, or court of justice, now called Seville. 



257 

conversation could be only relished by men who cultivated 
philosophy. But the governor pressed an interview, and 
Apollonius, when he heard of the excellence of his cha- 
racter, and that he detested the extravagancies of Nero, 
instantly complied ; at the same time he wrote him a letter, 
requesting a meeting at Gades. When the governor re- 
ceived the letter, he waited on him with a few select 
friends, without any ceremony whatever. As soon as mu- 
tual salutations were past, they had a private interview, 
of which no one except themselves knew the purport. 
Damis supposes a plot was contrived for the putting Nero 
to death, for he says the conference lasted three days, at 
the end of which, the governor embraced Apollonius and 
took his leave of him with these words, " Farewel, and 
remember Vindex ;" # the meaning of which, is \n hat fol- 
lows. Whilst Nero was singing in Achaia, Vindex was 
stirring up to rebellion the Hesperian nations,*}- (a man 
every way fitted to snap those strings, on which the em- 
peror played so sillily) he spoke to the armies, he com- 
manded, and said what might have been supposed to flow 
from the purest fountains of philosophy. He told them 
that Nero was every thing rather than a harper ; and yet a 
harper rather than an emperor. He accused him of mad- 
ness, cruelty, avarice, and every species of lasciviousness. 
He did not arraign him for the most cruel of all his ac- 



* Vindex, a governofr of Gaul, who revolted against Nero, and de- 
termined to deliver the Roman empire from his tyranny. He was fol- 
lowed by a numerous army, but at last defeated by one of the Empe- 
ror's generals. When he perceived that all was lost he laid violent 
hands upon himself. 

t Hesperian nations mean here Gauls. I suppose the word Hesperia 
was applied by the Romans to all countries that lay to the west of 
them. The Greeks called Italy Hesperia (from Hesper, orVesper, the 
setting sun, or the evening) because it was situate in the west at the 
setting sun. The same name for similar reasons was applied to Spain 
by the Latins. 

s 



256 

tions, because it was generally allowed that his mother was 
partly put to death forhaving brought into the world such 
a monster. Apollonius, who foresaw the end of what 
was passing, strengthened the cause of Vindex, by associating 
with him in it the governor of a neighbouring province, 
doing every thing in short for Rome except that of taking 
up arms in her defence. 



CHAP. XI 

WHILST affairs were thus circumstanced" in Spain, our 
travellers passed into Africa, and from that into the coun- 
try* of the Tyrrhenians, from whence, partly by land, and 
partly by sea, they proceeded to Sicily and landed at Lily- 
baBum. In approaching Messena, and the strait where the 
Tyrrhenian sea mixes with the Adriatic, and forms the 
gulph which is so dangerous to sailors, they say they 
heard of the flight of Nero, the death of Vindex, and of 
the enipire being invaded partly by Romans, and partly by 
strangers. Whereupon, his companions asked him to 
tell what he thought would be the consequence of these 
disturbances ? and whom he thought would become master 
of the empire i To which he answered, many Thebam, 
herein alluding to the short-lived power of Vitellius, 
Galba, and Otho, which he compared to that of the 
Thebans,'|* who for a little time held dominion in the 
affairs of Greece. 



* Etruria — a celebrated country of Italy, which originally contain- 
ed twelve different nations. The inhabitants were particularly famous 
for their superstition ; and great confidence in omens, dreams, augu- 
ries, &c. which accounts for this visit paid to it by Apollonius. 

t With Epaminondas died the power of the Theban commonwealth; 
so that it is manifest that the glory of his country was born, and died 
with him. Justin, b. vi, c. 8* 



f i59 



CHAP. XII. 

WHAT I have said clearly proves that Apollonius had a 
foreknowledge of what was to come to pass, and that they 
who consider him in the light of an enchanter,* must be mad. 
Let us, however, consider the matter more at large. En- 
chanters (whom of all men I account the most mise- 
rable) boast of having power to chauge the decrees of 
fate, either by the tormenting of spirits, or by barbaric 
sacrifices, or charms, or poisons ; and many of them, 
when accused of such practices, have confessed the fact. 
But Apollonius, contrary to them, followed the decrees 
of destiny, and only declared what they w r ould be ; and 
this not by the means of enchantments, but by such com- 
munications as were made him by the Gods. For when 
he saw among the Indians, tripods and cupbearers, and 
other things of the automaton kind, he never inquired 
how they were constructed, nor how to make them.f He 
barely gave them his approbation without shewing any 
inclination to imitate them. 

CHAP. XIII. 

WHEN they came to Syracuse, a woman of no mean fami- 
ly happened to be brought to bed of a monster, such as 



* St. Jerora and Justin Martyr assign no other reason for all his 
wonderful operations, than the knowledge he had of nature and ab- 
solve him from all charge of magic. — The former says of him in his 
epistle to Paulinus, (i Apollonius, sive magus, ut vulgus loquitur, sive 
Philosophus, ut Py thagorici tradunt." The latter is much more open in 
his questions to the orthodox, " Apollonius ut vir naturalium potentia- 
mm & dissensionum atque consensionum earuni peritus, ex hac scien- 
tia mira faciebat, non authoritat£ divina; hinc ob rem in omnibus 
jndiguit assumptione idonearum materiarum quae eum adjuvarent ad id 
perficiendum quod efficiebatur." 

t I am of opinion the art of making so very necessary pieces of fur. 
nitnre, would have been of more service to mankind than all his pre- 
tended miracles, &c. 



260 

was never seen before. It was a child with three heads, 
three necks, and but one body. The vulgar interpreta- 
tion which some gave to this prodigy was, that Sicily call- 
ed Trinacria, from its three promontories, would be un- 
done, if not supported by unanimity and harmony ; many 
of its cities being full of intestine feuds, and at variance 
with each other without any good order throughout the 
island. Others said it was the many-headed Typhoeus, 
who threatened the island. Whereupon, Apollonius said, 
Go Damis, and see whether what is reported is true ; for 
at this time the monster was shewn in public for the in- 
spection of the curious, who might be able to form some 
opinion of it. As soon as Damis made his report of its hav- 
ing three heads, and that it was of the masculine gender, 
Apollonius collecting his friends about him, said, Rome 
will have three emperors, whom yesterday I called The- 
bans. None of them shall acquire the entire dominion of 
the empire ; but some, after getting the supreme power in 
Rome, and others in its vicinity, shall be cut off, and 
change their characters as quickly as they who represent 
the parts of tyrants on the stage. As he said, so his pre- 
diction turned out. For Galba, soon after his election to 
the empire, perished within the walls of Rome. Vitellius 
was lost whilst dreaming of the supreme power, and 
Otho ended his career amongst the western Gauls, with- 
out the common honour of a funeral, as if a private man. 
All this was dispatched by fortune within the brief space 
of one year. 



CHAP. XIV. 

AFTER this, Apollonius and his friends proceeded to 
Catana, near which stands mount iEtna. Here they learnt 
that Typhoeus was chained under the mountain, from 
whom issued that fire which fed JEtna. But our travellers 






9,6 1 

accounted for the phenomenon in a way more rational, and 
like philosophers. Apollonius introduced the investigation, 
with asking his companions, Is there a mythology ? Yes* 
said Menippus, and is what the poets speak so much of- 
And what do you think of Esop ?* That he is a myco- 
logist, and an inventor of fables. But what fables, said 
Apollonius, do you consider most wise? Those of the 
poets, replied Menippus, and the reason is, because they 
are sung as if true. What then is your opinion of Esop'sPf 
I think them all, said Menippus, about frogs, and asses, 
and such trifles, and only fit to be swallowed by eld wo- 
men and children. And yet they appear to me, said 
Apollonius, best adapted to convey wisdom. Heroic fa- 
bles, with which poetry abounds, corrupt the hearers, 
inasmuch as the writers of them make absurd amours, in- 
cestuous marriages, blasphemies against the Gods, chil- 
dren devoured, and unbecoming stratagems, and disputes, 
the subjects of their compositions. The poets, in relating 
the above as true, invite the lover, the jealous man, the 
miser, and the ambitious, to the perpetration of that which 
is only represented. But Esop, on account of his wisdom, 
with which he was endowed, never ranked himself with 



* ^Esop is always a new book, 
i*Esop in a judicious hand ; 
But 'tis in vain on it to look, 
Without the grace to understand. 
Pleasant his fables are indeed, 
Profound, ingenious, and sly ; 
Fables that infancy may read, 
Maturity alone apply. 

Hall's Fables. 

t Plato, after having banished Homer from his commonwealth, has 
given JEsop a very honourable place in it. He wishes that children 
were to suck these fables with their milk : he recommends them to 
nurses to teach them, for one cannot accustom them too soon to wis- 
dom and virtue. 



262 

the herd of such versifiers, but opened a new road to fame. 
He, like those who knew how to treat well their guests 
with the commonest fare, uses subjects apparently small, 
to give great instruction ; and to the fable delivered, sub- 
joins the moral, which says, Do this, and Don't do that. 
Besides, he is more attached to truth than the poet. The 
poets do all in their power to give their fables an air of 
probability , # but Esop, on the contrary, in proposing his 
fable, proposes what every body knows is false, and yet 
from it draws nothing but what is true. The poet, after 
he has delivered his fable, submits it to the good sense of 
his hearers to examine its truth. But, the writer of fables, 
when he proposes his story, and subjoins its moral, shews 
clearly, as Esop does, that he has used what was false, as 
a medium to convey what is useful to his hearers. The 
beauty of this kind of writing consists in making animals 
without sense, so entertaining as to excite the attention of 
animals with sense. For, being conversant with these fa- 
bles from our childhood, and having, as it were, sucked 
them in with our mother's milk, we get ideas of the seve- 
ral animals, and can immediately say, such an one is of a 
noble disposition, and another of a sluggish nature, one 
is sportive in its manners, and another innocent. Hence 
the poet,f after he has said, " the destinies of men are va- 
rious," or made some observation which might be sung by 
a chorus, retires. But Esop, by annexing an oracle to 
each fable, brings about the very effect which from the 
beginning he proposed. 

CHAP. XV. 

BUT, O Menippus ! said Apollonius, I will tell you a 
story, which I learnt from my mother when a boy. Esop, 



* Ficta voluptatis causa sint proxiraa veris. Horace, 

t Euripides's Alcestis. 



263 

said die good woman, was a shepherd, who fed his flock 
near the temple of Mercury, and loved wisdom so much, 
that he made it the subject of his prayers to the Gods. 
Mercury had many other supplicants besides Esop, who 
each came with a particular request. One asked for gold, 
another for silver : one hung an ivory caduceus on his altar, 
and another offered something of no less value ; Esop, 
poor man, had but little, and of that little he was very 
frugal. He made an offering of some milk, and of that 
only what could be drained from his sheep after being 
milked, and sometimes as much of a honeycomb as he 
could hold in his hand, added to this, he used to treat the 
God with myrtle berries, and roses, and a few violets. 
Why Mercury, he would say, should I neglect my sheep 
to weave garlands for you ? At last the day appointed for 
the distribution of wisdom arrived; when all appeared. 
Mercury, the God of wisdom as well as of merchandise, 
thus addressed them, To you, who have made me the 
richest offerings, I give philosophy : and to you, who have 
made me the next best I give eloquence : then he said to 
the rest, you shall be an astronomer, you a musician : to 
you I give superiority in Epic poetry, and to you in Iambic 
verse. After he bad distributed the several parts of philo- 
sophy, he found, that in spite of all his prudence, poor 
Esop escaped his notice. Luckily, however, he recollect- 
ed a story, which, whilst he was in his cradle, the Hours, 
who had the care of his education on the top of mount 
Olympus, told him of a heifer, who in a conversation she 
had with a man on the subject of herself, and the earth, 
induced him to fall in love with the cows of Apollo ; and 
so he gave Esop the gift of composing fables, the only 
present that remained in the house of wisdom* Mercury, 



* Fontaine, in his preface says, " I do not know how i% conies to 
pasj» that the ancients have not made these very fables descend from 

heaven. 



264 

after presenting him with this talent, said, " Take that 
which I first learnt myself." Hence the rich imagina- 
tion of Esop, and the power he possessed of inventing 
fables. 



CHAP. XVI. 

AFTER proposing to give some explanation of the phe- 
nomenon of mount JEtna more agreeable to truth and na- 
ture than the mere vulgar story, 1 may be accused of tri- 
fling, in indulging so much in the praise of fables : yet I 
hope the digression is not without its merit. The fables 
which we wish to reject are not in the style and manner of 
Esop, but in that of what are considered dramatic, and 
brought on the stage as the theme of poetry. The com- 
mon story is, that Typhoeus,* or Enceladus lies bound in 
chains under the mountain, and in his respirations vomits 
up fire. I say there are giants, and I say that their bodies 
have been seen wherever their tombs were opened. 
Though I make this assertion, I do not, however, say 
they ever fought with the Gods, but I assert they behaved 
with great irreverence in their temples and shrines. As to 



heaven, and that they have not assigned them a God to have the direc- 
tion of them, as well as poesy and eloquence." 

Bayle says, one might have remembered the passage in the text, and 
yet have spoken in the same manner with Fontaine ; for there ne- 
ver was a well established tradition in true antiquity concerning the 
celestial origin of the Apologue. 

* Enceladus, they say, transfix'd by Jove, 

With blasted limbs, came trembling from above : 

And where he fell, th' avenging father drew 

This flaming hill, and on his body threw ; 

As often as he turns his weary sides, 

He shakes the solid isle, and smoke the heavens hides. 

Virgil, b. iii. 



265 

ail that's said of their scaling the heavens and driving tht 
Gods into exile, I think it as foolish to conceive, as it is 
to utter. There is another story, to which credit cannot 
be given though it is not so blasphemous as the last, which 
says, that Vulcan keeps his workshop in iEtna,* where he 
beats upon his anvil. There are many other burning 
mountains in various parts of the earth besides iEtna ; and 
yet we are not so inconsiderate to assign their eruptions to 
the agency of giants and Vulcans. 

CHAP. XVII. 

WHAT then is the cause of these volcanic eruptions? 
Earth that is mixed with bitumen and sulphur, burns inter- 
nally without throwing out any flame. But, whenever the 
earth itself happens to be full of chinks and caverns, through 
which the wind can penetrate, a lire is kindled within, 
which produces a flame that at last bursts from the moun- 
tain in streams of liquid fire, covering as it goes the adja- 
cent land. Sometimes this fire, or lava, runs into the sea 
in an aggregated mass, and forms mouths like a river. 
Here an opportunity offers of noticing the Campus Pio- 
rum,-\ which was surrounded by a torrent of fire, from 



* Vulcan's forges were supposed to be under mount iEtna in Sicily, 
as "well as in every part of the earth where there were Volcanos. 

t A plain at the foot of mount AStna, in the territory of Catana to 
the south-west, in which stood the statues of two young men, who in 
an eruption of mount iEtna, saved their aged parents by carrying 
them on their shoulders. 

Cornelius Severus has mentioned these two young men in his poem 
on mount /Etna. 

Istis divitia? solas materque paterque, 
Hanc rapiunt predam, mediumque exire per ignem 
Ipso dante fidem, proper ant. O maxima rerum 
Et merito, pietas, homini Tutissima virtus. 
Embuere Pios Juvenes attingereflamma, %c. 



266 

\vhich may naturally be drawn this conclusion, that to the 
pious every land is safe, every sea navigable, not only to 
him who trusts himself to a ship, but to him who com- 
mits himself to the waves. It was thus Apollonius finish- 
ed all his discourse by exhorting men to practise virtue. 



GHAP. XVIII. 

AFTER spending what time he thought sufficient in Sici- 
ly in philosophical discussions, he passed over into Greece 
about the rising of the star Arcturus.* The voyage was 
prosperous to Leucas, where arriving, he said, Let us 
leave the ship, for it is not good to sail in her to Achaia. 
These words made impression only on those who knew the 
man. He then embarked in a Leucadian vessel, and 
with all who chose to go with him saited to Lechseum.f 
But the Syracusan ship went to the bottom in navigating 
the gulph of Crissa. 



CHAP. XIX. 

AT Athens he was initiated by the very Hierophant, 
whom, you may remember, he foretold to his predecessor, 
and here he met Demetrius the philosopher, where he had 
retired after what he said relative to the dedication of 
Nero's bath. He was a man of so much courage that he 
did not leave Greece at the time when Nero conducted 
himself so indecently at his musical exhibitions. Deme- 
trius told him he had seen Musonius at the Isthmus, 



* Pliny tells us it rose in his age about the beginning of September ■ 
it rises now about the beginning of October. 

t Lechffium— a port of Corinth in the bay of Corinth— used for their 
Italian trade. 



267 

bound in chains, and forced to dig. As it was natural, 
he says, he pitied his hard lot, and was sorry to see a man 
of his character digging the ground with a spade. Muso- 
nius with eyes uplifted, said, I know, Demetrius, you are 
troubled to see me thus employed. But, what would you 
have said, had you seen me playing on the harp like Nero ? 
Many other things concerning Musonius, and some of 
even a more extraordinary nature I pass over, lest I should 
seem to take a liberty not consistent with that of a careful 
narrator. 



CHAP. XX. 

AFTER passing the winter in the Grecian temple, Apol- 
lonius determined in the following spring to go into Egypt. 
In visiting the several cities of Greece, he never failed 
giving the best advice he could to them : he found much 
in each to censure, and much to commend, for he never 
spared praise where it was due ; after this he went down 
to the Piraeus where there was a ship ready to set sail for 
Ionia. The merchant, who freighted the vessel for his own 
use, did not like taking passengers with him. Where- 
upon, Apollonius inquired what merchandise he had on 
board, and was told by the owner he carried images of 
the Gods to Ionia, of which some were made of gold and 
marble, and others of ivory and gold. Is it for the pur- 
pose of dedicating them to the Gods, said Apollonius, 
that you carry them, or is it for any other use f I carry 
them, said the merchant, to sell to any persons who may 
chuse to buy them. And do you apprehend, said Apol- 
lonius, we will rob you of them? I do not, returned 
the merchant, approve their being placed in the same ship 
with such a promiscuous multitude, nor do I think it right 
for them to hear a conversation so vicious, and yet so 
common among sailors. But, my good Sir, said Apol- 



268 

lonius, the vessels fitted out by you against the barbarians 
(for I suppose you are an Athenian) abound in all manner 
of licentiousness, and yet the Gods never thought them- 
selves defiled by embarking in them. You are wrong in 
preventing philosophers going aboard your vessel, in whose 
company the Gods themselves delight, and this, at a time 
wheu you are trying to turn the Gods to the most advan- 
tage. This was not the custom of the statuaries of old, 
they did not run from city to city, making sale of their 
Gods : they carried with them only workmen and instru- 
ments, and whenever they found the raw materials of ivo- 
ry and marble, they formed statues of the Gods in the 
temples themselves. But you carrying your Gods from 
port to port, and from market to market, as if they were 
(far be it from me to utter it) Hyrcanian or Scythian 
slaves, think yourselves guilty of no impiety by such a 
traffic ? There are men also who hawk about the country 
little figures of Bacchus, or Ceres, and say they are 
maintained by the Gods they carry with them. But surely 
what you do, of feeding on your Gods, and of not being 
satisfied therewith, must be pronounced a species of hor- 
rid gain, and even of insanity too, independent of the 
fears naturally arising from the profanation. After this 
severe reprimand, he took his passage in another ship. 



CHAP. XXI. 

ARRIVED at Chios, Apollonius without going on shore, 
quickly entered into another ship, which a herald was pro- 
claiming bound for Rhodes ; and with him embarked his 
companions in deep silence, all seeming 1 desirous to obey 
him in all things. A favourable wind soon carried them 
there, where I will notice some occurrences whilst he staid 
in that island. Once when he was viewing the statue of 
the Colossus, Damis asked him what he thought greater 



269 

than it ? A man, said Apollonius, whose whole mind is 
devoted to philosophy. At this time, one Canus a flute- 
player* happened to be in Rhodes, who was esteemed the 
best performer of his day. As soon as Apollonius saw 
him, he said, what is a flute-player able to do ? Whatever, 
replied Canus, his hearers wish. But, said Apollonius, 
more of your hearers would rather be made rich, than 
hear you play, Can you make those rich, whom you know 
wish it. No, said he, but I should wish to possess that 
power. Can you, continued Apollonius, make the young 
who hear you, beautiful ? for you must know, that all who 
are young, would, if they could, be beautiful. Nor that, 
said Canus, though there is much beauty in my pipe. 
What therefore is it, said Apollonius, you think your hear- 
ers wish for ? What else, returned Canus, than to remove 
their sorrow when in affliction, or increase their joy when 
merry ; or if in love, to soothe their passion with melody, 
or if devout, to excite their religious zeal, and dispose 
them to pour it forth in spiritual songs. And is all this to 
be done, said Apollonius, by a pipe composed of gold and 
orichalcum, and the legs of a dead ass or stag ? Or is it 
rather something else which does it ? Something else un- 
doubtedly, said Canus, and which I will tell you : The 
music, the modulation, the variation of notes, the change 
of harmony suited to produce the different effects of joy 
and sorrow, all these united and blended, affect the minds 
of the hearers, and mould them to whatever you wish. 
Now, said Apollonius, I understand what your art is able 
to do. It is a variety of sounds, and different modula- 
tions, which you practise and give to the audience. And 
yet in my opinian your flute requires some more helps than 
what you have mentioned ; and what I mean, are a right 



* Dr. Buruey says, il the list of illustrious flute-players in antiquity 
is too numerous to allow a separate article to each." 

History of Music. 



270 

inspiration of the breath, a proper application of the 
mouth, and a nice dexterity of the hand. The first con- 
sists in making the voice pass soft and clear without being 
affected by any degree of guttural hoarseness — other- 
wise the sound would be unmusical. The second is a 
just pressure of the lips on the tongue of the instru- 
ment, without its causing the cheeks to be too much 
swelled and inflated. The dexterity of finger (which is 
the third requisite to be mentioned) is what the performer 
must consider of the utmost importance, so that neither 
the wrist may decline its office from too great rigidity ; nor 
the fingers fail in their duty from want of velocity in 
running over the stops, on which depend all the variations 
of sound : for the facility of passing from one note to ano- 
ther, is what is considered as the great excellence in all 
who possess a dexterity of hand. If you, Canus, can do 
all this, you need have no fears in playing on your flute — 
for Euterpe herself will accompany you.* 



CHAP. XXII. 

AT this time there was at Rhodes, a young man who 
became suddenly possessed of a large fortune, without 
having received any education. He was then building a 
house, and was collecting pictures and statues from all 
parts of the world to furnish it with. The moment 
Apollonius saw him, he inquired what money he had 
expended on preceptors and education ? Not a drachma, 
said the youth. Pray what has your house cost you ? 
Twelve talents, and I believe it will cost me as much 
more. And what, said Apollonius, will you do with 



* To flute-players, nature gave brains there's no doubt, 
But alas ! 'tis in vain, for they soon blow them out. 

Burney—Hist. of Mmc. From Atheneus. 



271 

this house ? I will live splendidly in it, said he, for as I 
shall have in it places proper for all bodily exercise, and 
groves to walk in, there will be little or no necessity for 
going even into the forum, and men I think will come 
with as much pleasure to visit me, as they would to a 
temple. But, said Apollonius, are men to be respected 
on their own account, or on account of what they possess ? 
They are to be respected, replied the youth, for the sake 
of their riches, which you know are omnipotent. But, 
said Apollonius, whom do you think the best guardian of 
riches, he who is well educated or he who is not ? When 
the youth heard this he was silent : whereupon Apollonius 
said, in my opinion, Sir, you do not so much possess your 
house as you are possessed by it. For when I enter a 
temple, it matters not how small, I have greater pleasure 
in seeing a statue of ivory and gold, than I have in 
seeing in a spacious temple, one rudely formed of earth 
and clay. 



CHAP. XXIII. 

APOLLONIUS happening to meet a fat fellow, who 
was making his boast of the quantity he could eat and 
drink, said to him, are you he who is so much enslaved 
to his belly? I am, said he, and offer sacrifice for it. 
And what, said Apollonius, do you hope to gain from 
such a species of indulgence ? That of being gazed on 
with wonder, said he, for I take it for granted you have 
heard of Hercules, and know that the food he eat was 
as much celebrated as his combats. It was so, said 
Apollonius, as he was Hercules. But what is your merit, 
thou abomination? for what glory can you derive from 
eating, except that of being burst. This is all I have to 
say of Apollonius at Rhodes. 






tit 



CHAP XXIV. 

THE following is what passed on his arrival at Alexan- 
dria, where the people loved him without ever having 
seen him, and were as anxious about him as if he had 
been their old acquaintance. The inhabitants of Upper 
Egypt, in consideration of their attachment to theological 
pursuits, wished him to pay them a visit. From the com- 
mercial intercourse subsisting between Greece and Egypt, 
Apollonius was at once a "great favorite with everybody, 
and from the moment the people heard of his arrival, 
they were all attention. Whilst he was passing from the 
harbour to the town, they looked upon him as a God, 
and made* way for him in the narrow streets, as is done 
for those who carry the sacred relicks of the Gods. As he 
was going along in the midst of a more pompous procession 
than governors of provinces, he met twelve men charged 
with robbery, on their way to execution. When Apol- 
lonius saw them, he said, I foresee all will not suffer, for 
that man (pointing to one) has made a false confession. 
Then turning to the executioners who were conducting 
them, he desired them not to go so fast to the place of 
punishment, and bid them to take care that he to whom 
he pointed should be the last man to suffer; for I see, 
says he, he is not guilty of the crime for which he is 
going to die. For my part 1 think you would do well 
in postponing their execution for a short space, and whom 
perhaps it would be wiser not to put to death at all. In 
this way he protracted his discourse contrary to what 
he was accustomed. The event turned out as he wished. 
After eight of them had been beheaded, a horseman rode 



Locum date sacra ferenti. Ovid. 



t 



273 

up with speed to the place of execution, and cried out, 
spare Phorion, he is no robber, he confessed himself 
guilty of what he was innocent through fear of the torture, 
wliich has appeared from the confession of those put to 
the rack. I need not mention the joy of the Egyp- 
tians, nor the applauses Apollonius received from a people 
who, without such an instance of his foresight, were well 
disposed to admire and praise him. 



CHAP. XXV. 

WHEN he went up into the temple* a beauty shone in his 
face, and the words he uttered on all subjects were divine, 
and framed in wisdom. He approved not of the shedding 
of the blood of bulls nor of geese, nor of other animals, 
for the sacrifices of such victims he thought unbecoming 
the feasts of the Gods. When the Patriarchy asked him 
why he did not sacrifice ? I would rather, said Apol- 
lonius, ask you on what motive you do. To this the 
Patriarch said, and who is wise enough to reform the 
established worship of the Egyptians ? Every sage, replied 
the other, who comes from the Indians. But this day I 
will burn an ox, and I would wish you to attend and partici- 
pate of its odour, as I think you would like to do it, if the 
Gods shew no displeasure. Whilst a bull J compounded 
of various spices was consuming in the fire, Apollonius 
said, behold the sacrifice. What sacrifice, said the 
Egyptian, for I see none here. Has not the whole race 



* The temple is supposed to be that of Serapis, one of the Egyptian 
Deities, who had a very rich one at Alexandria. Consult Tacitus for 
the history of the God Serapis, and his first introduction into 
Egypt. 

t The name given to the high priest of Serapis. 

t After the example of Pythagoras and Empedocles. 
T 



274 

of prophets down from Jamus, # Teleus,f Clytius, and 
Melarnpus,J been mistaken, my friend, in having said 
so many things of fire, and in having drawn so many 
oracles from it ? or can you imagine that the fire pro- 
ceeding from the burning of a pine or cedar, possesses a 
prophetic quality, and is capable of foretelling events, but 
that what proceeds from the burning of the tears of pure 
and unctious frankincense is not far preferable ? Certainly 
if you knew the wisdom which is latent in fire, you would 
be able to discover in the orb of the sun at rising,^ many 
prognostics. In these words he rebuked the Egyptian as 
one unskilled in divine matters. 



CHAP. XXVI. 

THE people of Alexandria being passionately fond of 
horses, used to flock in crowds to the Hippodrome to 
see them run, where they often fought till they killed 
each other. This abuse fell under the heavy .displeasure of 
Apollonius, who one day in going into the temple 
said, how long will you persist in dying, not for your chil- 
dren, nor altars, nor hearths ? or rather, I might say, 



* Jamidee, certain prophets among the Greeks, descended from 
Jamus, a son of Apollo, who received the gift of prophecy from his 
father, which remained among his posterity. 

t In the text Teleadce— Olearius says, I can find no prophets of this 
name. In Herodotus he might have found Tellias of Eleum, the 
soothsayer of the Phocians, who is said by Larcher, the learned 
translator of that historian, to have been the chief of the family 
of the Telliadce, in which the art of divination was hereditary. 

X Clytiada, and Melampodidce — both families were very nearly con- 
nected, and celebrated for their knowledge in soothsaying, and set 
apart in Greece for the functions prescribed by it. 

$ Sol quoque, et exoriens, et cum se condet in undas, 
Signa dabit. Soliin certissima signa sequuntur. 

Virgil. 



■ 



275 

how long will you persist in defiling your temples by 
entering them stained with blood, and in slaughtering 
each other within their very walls. Troy is said to have 
been overturned by the means of one horse, which the 
Greeks had contrived with great art, but here you arm 
chariot against chariot, and horse against horse, for which 
your love is unbounded. It is not by the Atridae nor the 
descendants of iEacus, you are destroyed, but by your- 
selves, with a loss heavier than what befel the Trojans 
on that night, in which they lay sunk in intemperance 
and debauch. In the celebration of the Olympic Games, 
where contests arise in wrestling, boxing, and the pan- 
cratia, no one is killed by the athletas, even on occasions 
where pardon is to be obtained in case of such an event 
happening in the heat of combat. But with you, swords 
are drawn, and stones flung, and all on account of horses. 
Are you not afraid of fire consuming your city, wherein 
are heard shouts and groans, and the earth stained with 
the blood of the dying and the dead.* Reverence the 
Nile, the common cup of Egypt.f But why mention the 
Nile amongst men who prefer measuring^ the rising of 
blood to that of its water. Damis says he added many 
other things to this rebuke of the Egyptians. 



* Victors and vanquish'd join promiscuous cries, 
And shrilling shouts, and dying groans arise j 
With streaming blood the slipp'ry fields are dy'd 
And slaughter'd heroes swell the dreadful tide. 

Homer, b.iv. 
t The Egyptians call the Nile the Cup, set before them by the Gods, 
and Homer says, 

Once more th' Egyptiau stream, whose waters flow 
From Jones high mansions, to the plains below. Od. b. iv. 

X How high it rises, is known, says Pliny, by marks and measures 
taken of certain pits. 



T 2 



276 



CHAP. XXVII. 

WHILST Vespasian was meditating the assumption of 
the imperial power in the countries bordering on Egypt, 
and afterwards to pass into that province, Dion and Eu- 
phrates, of whom more will be said hereafter, expected 
that the people would have public rejoicings. For from 
the time of the first emperor, by whom the affairs of 
Rome were well ordered, such a series of cruel tyrants 
succeeded each other for the space of fifty years, # as ren- 
dered Claudius (whose intermediate reign lasted about 
thirteen years) unfit to be ranked in the number of good 
princes. Claudius did not obtain the empire till he was 
fifty years of age, a period of life when the human mind 
is usually in its greatest vigour, and at this time he appear- 
ed to love the sciences. But notwithstanding his age, he 
suffered himself to be carried away by all the follies and 
passions of youth, and left the empire to be made a prey 
of by women by whom he was shamefully, put to death, 
so that, though he might have foreseen what was to hap- 
pen^ yet he was unable to guard against it. Apollonius 
was as much pleased as Dion and Euphrates, with what 
was going forward, but as yet did not make it a subject of 
public declamation, from an idea that such a mode of ad- 
dress became the character of a rhetorician, more than 
that of a philosopher. When the emperor arrived in 
Egypt, and was approaching the gates of Alexandria, the 



* Vespasian began to take upon himself the government about the 
year of Christ 69, from which time to the beginning of the reign of 
Tiberius, who succeeded Augustus in the empire, was fifty-five 
years. 

t It appears from several circumstances, says Suetonius, that he 
was sensible of his approaching dissolution, and made no secre' 
of it. 



sacred order of the priesthood, the civil magistrates, the 
deputies from the prefectures, into which the country is 
divided, the philosophers and the sages all went out to meet 
him. But no part of this pompous procession engaged the 
attention of Apollonius, who all the time was teaching phi- 
losophy in the temple. The Emperor received them all with 
a short speech, which was at once gracious and benign, and 
then inquired whether the Tyaneun was in these parts r 
They auswered he was, and that he was doing all he could to 
make men better. Can you tell me, said the emperor, 
where I can find him ; for 1 wish much to see him. You 
will find him, said Damis, in the temple, where, as I was 
coming here, he said he was going. Let us repair to it, 
replied the prince, first, that I may offer my prayers to the 
Gods, # and next, that I may converse with the excellent 
man. In consequeuce of this, it was rumoured abroad 
that the idea of possessing himself of the empire was first 
conceived, when he was besieging Jerusalem, from which 
he sent to ask the advice of Apollonius, who declined 
going into a country which its inhabitants, had defiled both 
by what they did, and what they suffered. This is what 
induced him, (having now got possession of the empire) 



* Of this interview all history is silent ; and yet from the character 
of Vespasian it is probable it might have taken place. From Tacitus 
we learn the part Vespasian was advised to act in the pretended cure 
of two men at Alexandria, and as the power of working miracles is 
by some thought good policy, I think the same courtiers who advised 
him to attempt the cure of two men, might have recommended rhis 
interview with Apollonius, as a measure equally political, and also cor- 
roborative of the pretended character he had assumed. Dr. Taylor in 
his life of Christ, thinks Vespasian was aided by Apollonius in his im- 
positions on the populace.— Dr. Cudworth thinks there is some reason 
to suspect that our archimago Apollouius might have had some finger in 
Vespasian's miracles, from his great familiarity and intimacy with 
him. 



278 

to take a journey into Egypt to discourse with him on sub- 
jects which I am going to notice.* 



CHAP. XXVIII. 

AFTER the accustomed sacrifices were performed, and 
before the deputies from the several cities were spoken to, 
Vespasian, turning to Apollonius, said with the voice of a 
supplicant, make me emperor. Apollonius answered, it's 
done already: for in the prayers which I have just offered 
to heaven to send us a prince upright, generous, wise, ve- 
nerable in years, and a true father, you are the man I ask- 
ed from the Gods. With this answer the emperor being 
well pleased (for all the people shouted with joy at what 
they heard) said, May I ask you, Apollonius, what opinion 
you formed of the government of Nero? He replied, 
Nero knew, perhaps, how to tune his harp, but he dis- 
graced his authority by too much remissness at one time, 
and too much intenseness at another. Then you think, 
said Vespasian, that an emperor should observe the golden 
mean in the government of an empire. It's not I, said 
Apollonius, but God himself who has defined equity by the 
term mediocrity. However, in these matters you have very 
good advisers, pointing to Dion and Euphrates, for as yet he 
had had no cause of dispute with the latter, Whereupon, 
the emperor, lifting up his hands to heaven, says, O Jupi- 
ter! Grant me to govern wise men, and wise men to 
govern me. Afterwards turning to the Egyptians, he cries 
out, Draw from me as you do from the Nile. In this 



* Vespasian ne vint point a Alexandrie pour voir Apollone ; mais 
pour affanaer la ville de Rome en empechant qu'on y portat du Bled, 
eemrne Tacite le rapporte. Du Pin. 



279 

manner Egypt got some time to breathe from the weight 
of oppression under which she groaned. 



CHAP. XXIX. 

AS the Emperor was coming down from the temple, he 
gave Apollonius his hand, and leading him into the palace, 
said, Some people may possibly think I act too much like 
a young man in aspiring to the purple at the age of sixty : 
but I will justify it to you, that you may justify it to others. 
In my youth I do not recollect being a slave to riches ; 
and I bore the offices and dignities conferred on me by the 
government of Rome so meekly, as not to have been thereby 
either too much elated, or too much dejected. Against Nero 
I never attempted any alteration in the state of affairs, but, 
on the contrary, when he came to the empire, which he re- 
ceived from his predecessor, (though not according to the 
established laws) I was submissive to authority on account 
of Claudius, who made me consul, and one of his coun- 
sellors. I swear by Minerva, that the tears have often run 
down my cheeks when I thought of him* to whom he be- 
queathed the empire. But now that Nero is dead, and 
that affairs are not altered for the better, but on the con- 
trary are as likely to be as ill, if not worse managed in the 
hands of Vitellius, I confess I came forward with a great- 
er degree of ardour to take the direction of them, first, 
because I wish to pursue a conduct which may make my- 
self estimable among men, and next, because in the pro- 
secution of my object I have to contend only with a man 
who is suuk in every species of debauchery. Vitellius uses 
more perfume in his bath than I do water ; and it is sup- 
posed, that if wounded, he would yield more perfume 



Nero. 



280 

than blood. Besides, he makes himself mad with the 
quantity of wine he drinks, and plays at dice as if afraid of 
losing a throw ; but the whole empire he sets at hazard, 
as if a matter of common sport and diversion. Though 
the slave of his courtesans, he intrigues with married wo- 
men, and says, that amours are sweet in proportion to the 
difficulties attending them. A thousand other traits 1 
omit more disgraceful than what I have mentioned, and 
which are neither fit for you, nor the Roman people to 
hear, whilst groaning under the yoke of such a monster. 
In my present undertaking I wish to act under the guidance 
of the Gods, and like myself. On you, Apollonius, I 
chiefly found my hopes of success, as I know you are 
well acquainted with whatever regards the Gods, and for 
that reason I make you my friend and counsellor in all 
those concerns, on which depend the affairs of sea and 
land. For if omens, favourable to my wishes, are given 
from the Gods, I will go on : if they are not propitious to 
me and the Roman people, I will stop where I am, and 
engage no farther in an enterprise unsanctioned by heaven. 



CHAP. XXX. 

AFTER this discourse Apollonius, like one divinely in- 
spired, said, O Jupiter Capitolinus, who are supreme 
judge in the present crisis of affairs, act mutually for each 
other, keep yourself for Vespasian, and keep Vespasian 
for you.* The temple which was burnt yesterday by im- 
pious hands is decreed by the fates to be rebuilt by you. 
On Vespasian's seeming amazed at this, he said, " These 
things will be explained hereafter. Fear nought from me. 
Go on with what you have so wisely begun." At this 



* Tacitus, b. iii. c. 69-70, History. 



281 

time Domitian, the son of Vespasian, was up in arms 
against Vitellius at Rome, in defence of his father's autho- 
rity. The youth was besieged in the capitol, and in 
making his escape from the hands of the besiegers, the 
temple was burnt, the account of which reached Apollo- 
nius before it did any other man in Egypt. In the midst 
of this conversation, Apollonius departed suddenly from 
the Emperor, saying, the laws and customs of the Indians 
permitted him only to do what was by them prescribed. 
However, Vespasian, whose zeal was only redoubled by 
what he heard from Apollonius, suffered not the tide iu 
his affairs to pass by unheeded, but looked on all things as 
now fixed and established by it. 



CHAP. XXXI. 

EARLY the next morning, about break of day, Apollo- 
nius entered the palace, and asked the officers in waiting 
how the Emperor was employed? who said, he had been 
for some time employed in writing letters. As soon as 
Apollonius heard this, he went away, saying to Damis, 
" This man will certainly be Emperor." At sun-rise he 
returned again, when he found Dion and Euphrates in the 
anti-chamber, both longing to know the result of the con- 
ference of the preceding day. He then gave them the 
apology which he had from the Emperor's own mouth, 
concerning which he declined delivering his own private 
opinion. Being the first admitted to see the Emperor, he 
said, Dion and Euphrates, your old friends, are at the 
door — men attached to your interest, and not unmindful of 
the present posture of affairs. Call them in, I pray you, 
for they are both wise. To wise men, replied Vespasian, 
my doors are always open ; but to you, Apollonius, my 
heart likewise. 



CHAP. XXXII. 

WHEN Dion and Euphrates were introduced, the Em- 
peror thus addressed them : Yesterday I made my apo- 
logy, in the presence of this excellent man, Apollonius. 
We have heard it, replied Dion, and think it not destitute 
of reason. To-day, continued Vespasian, we shall philo- 
sophize, friend Dion, concerning what are to be our future 
plans of conduct, in order that every thing may be for- 
tunate, and turn out to the public good. I have first con- 
sidered the character of Tiberius, and can only think of 
him as a man who changed the government into a wild 
and cruel tyranny. When I call to mind Caius, who 
succeeded him, I think of one under the dominion of the 
most unbridled passions ; who clothed after the fashion of 
the Lydians, and victorious in wars which never existed,* 
defiled the empire by a bacchanalian insanity. When I 
remember that good man Claudius, I only remember a 
man who, stupified by women, forgot both the empire and 
himself, and died, as was reported, by their hands. After 
this, when I look to Nero, what am I to say of him ? It 
has been comprised by Apollonius in one short and com~ 
prehensive sentence, which he uttered concerning the in- 
tenseness and remissness by which he disgraced the empire. 
What shall I say of the commotions stirred up by Galba, 
and of his being murdered in the middle of the forum, 
after having adopted Otho and Piso, both sons of a com- 
mon prostitute ?f For my part, if the empire is to be 
conceded to such a man as Vitellius, the most abominable 



* Such was his war with the Germans, for which he was seven times 
proclaimed Emperor ; and such his expedition to Britain, which ended 
in nothing but the gathering of shells on the sea-shore. 

t Why he calls them so I do not understand ; for neither the one 
aor the other were so born. 



283 

of all his predecessors, I should think it better that Nero 
returned again to life. Taking, then, my friends, into 
consideration the several kinds of tyranny that have dis- 
graced the state, I appoint you ray counsellors, to advise 
what are the means most proper for meliorating a govern- 
ment rendered so deservedly odious. What you have 
said, says Apollonius, puts me in mind of a musician, a 
man of great celebrity in his profession, who used to send 
his pupils to hear the most unskilful performers, that they 
might learn from them how they ought not to play. And 
now, O prince ! you have learnt how you ought not to 
govern from your predecessors, who have govemed so ill ; 
but as to the way you ought to govern, we shall now con- 
sider. 



CHAP. XXXIII. 

EUPHRATES began now to entertain a secret jealousy 
of Apollonius, from seeing the Emperor as much devoted 
to him as votaries are to the shrine of a favourite oracle. 
Incensed at this preference, he, in an angry tone of voice, 
raised above its usual pitch, said, It is not right to flatter 
the ambition of any man, nor to suffer ourselves to be 
carried away, contrary to reason, by people who act with- 
out any : on the contrary, we ought to bring them back to 
reason, if we are worthy the name of philosophers. Our 
first duty should have been to consider whether such or 
such an enterprise was to be undertaken : instead of which 
we are summoned to say how we should act, without 
being consulted whether it is proper to act or not. I 
think Vitellius should be put out of the way ; for 1 know 
him to be abominable, and sunk in every kind of debauch- 
ery. Though I know you to be a man, and possessed of 
the most generous feelings, I do not think it would have 
been becoming in you to have animadverted on his con- 



284 

duct without first knowing what was your own duty. The 
evils adhering to a monarchical form of government I need 
not enumerate, for you have given us an ample display of 
them. What I wish you to know is this — that when a 
young man aspires to sovereignty, he acts in a way agree- 
able to his youth, as he does when he loves wine or wo- 
men : in wishing to obtain the empire, he is not accounted 
wicked unless he is guilty of murder, or cruelty, or some 
impurity in the steps taken to effect his purpose. But on 
the other hand, when an old man possesses himself of the 
sovereign power, the first blame which attaches to him is, 
for desiring such a situation ; and though he may be of a 
gentle quiet nature, the world will ascribe it only to the 
maturity of his years ; for they will say, he ambitiously 
courted it from his youth, but without success. Failures 
in such attempts are sometimes set down to the account of 
adverse fortune, and sometimes to that of pusillanimity. 
The natural conclusion arising from which will be, that be 
either neglected the object of his ambition from having not 
trusted to his fortune, or having without a struggle given 
way to the tyranny of another, from a dread of his supe- 
rior courage. What might be said on the subject of bad 
fortune we shall pass over in silence ; but the ignominy 
arising from pusillanimity, how is that to be done away r 
especially, as by it you seem to have feared Nero, who was 
of all poor creatures the most timid and wretched. I 
know you were considered the author of all the attempts 
made against him by Vindex, as you were then at the head 
of the army, and commanded those troops which were 
marching against the Jews, and which would have been 
better employed against Nero ; for the Jews, from the be- 
ginning, were not only aliens to the Romans, but to all 
mankind, and lived separate from the rest of the world. 
They had neither food nor libations, nor prayers, nor sacri- 
fices, in common with other men, and were greater 
strangers to us than the people of Susa or Boetica, or the 






*8J 

farthest Indians. To punish such aliens to mankind \ 
unfitting ; it had been better, I think, not even to have had 
them as subjects. But for Nero — is there a man alive 
that did not wish to dispatch him with his own hand ? a 
man drinking up, as it were, human blood, and singing 
i n the midst of slaughter. For myself, my ears were ever 
open to all that concerned you. And whenever a messen- 
ger arrived, with an account of thirty thousand Jews 
being slaughtered by you in one battle, or fifty thousand in 
another, I used to take the courier aside, and ask him, 
when alone, " But what is Vespasian doing ? Is he think- 
ing of nothing greater than this ? Now that Vitellius is 
become the express image of what Nero was, and that 
you are engaged in war against him, finish what you have 
begun, seeing that such things are worthy of praise. As 
to what is to be done hereafter, let it be this : The Ro- 
mans prefer a popular state to all others, because under it 
they acquired all their greatness. Put an end to the mo- 
narchy, of which you have spoken so much, and give to 
the Romans popular power, and to yourself the glory of 
having restored to them their liberty. 



CHAP. XXXIV. 

WHILST Euphrates was haranguing in this manner, 
Apollonius looking on Dion, who assented to all he heard, 
and expressed his assent by frequent marks of applause, 
said, Will not you, Dion, say something in addition to 
the observations which have been made ? I will, replied 
he ; and what I have to add shall be partly agreeable to it, 
and partly not. I think 1 have already told you, Vespasian, 
that it would have been better to have destroyed Nero, 
than to have reduced the Jews to obedience; but instead 
of doing that, you seem to have acted like one who strove 
to prevent it ; for certainly he who quelled whatever insur- 



2S6 

rections were excited against him, served to supply him 
with the means of opposing all those who groaned under 
his tyranny. The war against Vitellius meets my appro- 
bation, because I think it more glorious to destroy a ty- 
ranny in its infancy, than when grown to manhood. I like 
a popular form of government; for though it be inferior 
to an aristocracy, the more knowing have preferred it to 
the monarchical and oligarchical forms. But I fear the 
Romans are not able to make such a change, from being 
so accustomed to the power of one. I am apprehensive 
they have not virtue enough to emancipate themselves, and 
cannot look a republic in the face, like people who, emerg- 
ing from darkness, are unable to bear the light. Hence I 
think Vitellius should be removed from the administration 
of affairs in the most speedy and effectual way possible, 
and at the same time that every preparation should be 
made for war; and yet war is not what ought to be made, 
but punishment inflicted if he does not immediately strip 
himself of the purple. After conquering him, which I 
think will be easily done, give the Romans the opportunity 
and the power of chusing what form of government they 
please; and if they prefer a popular state, allow them to 
do it. This will be more to your honour than the pos- 
session of many empires, or the gaining of many Olympic 
victories. And in whatever clime monuments of brass 
shall be erected to your honour, your name will supply 
eloquence with more materials for praise than were ever 
supplied by the names of Harmodius or Aristogiton. And 
should the people chuse a monarchy, to whom can they 
give that power in preference to you ? for in giving up that 
of which you are in possession, they will give it back to 
you in preference to all other men. 



£67 



CHAP. XXXV. 

WHEN silence ensued, the countenance of the Emperor 
expressed the conflict passing in his mind ; for considering 
that he had spoken and acted as Emperor, what he heard 
seemed as if meant to divert him from his purpose. 
Whereupon Apollonius said, You both seem to me to 
err in endeavouring to make the Emperor waver in a mat- 
ter on which his heart is set, by using a style of conversa- 
tion at once unseasonable, and like that of children ; for 
if I was possessed of what power he has, and was asked 
what good I could do with it, and were you to advise me 
as you have done Vespasian, it is more than probable you 
would bring me over to your opinion. The opinions of 
philosophers are of use alone to hearers who love philoso- 
phy. But you should now take into consideration that 
you address a man vested with full consular power, one 
who has long filled the very highest offices, and who, if 
divested of his authority, has every thing to fear. What, 
is he to be blamed for not rejecting what fortune throws 
in his way, or for receiving what she holds out, or for 
taking counsel how he should use it with moderation and 
prudence! Suppose, for instance, we were to see an 
athleta possessed of courage, of a goodly stature, of a 
symmetry and texture of limbs sufficient to dispute the 
prize at the Olympic Games, on his way to Arcadia, and 
should advise him to behave well; and after gaining the 
victory, suppose we were to counsel him not to let it be 
proclaimed by the common crier, or have his head crown- 
ed with parsley; if, I say, we were to act so, we should 
appear like simpletons, making a mockery of others' toils. 
Let us, therefore, out of consideration to the character of 
the man, the number of his troops, and their excellent 
discipline; and to the wisdom by which he has formed all 



288 

his plans, leave him to follow his own genius, and pray for 
his having good omens, and every thing which may ensure 
success. Moreover, you appear as if you had forgotten 
that he is the father of two sons, each at the head of an 
army, but who both would become his bitterest enemies if 
they were not sure of receiving the empire at his death. 
What, then, is left for him, except a war with his own 
family ? On the other hand, suppose he succeeds in ob- 
taining the empire, he will be respected by his sons : he 
will depend on them, and they will depend on him as their 
stay and support. Them he will find the natural guardians 
of his throne, and not mercenaries forced into allegiance : 
he will find them not pretending to appear dutiful, but at- 
tached and zealous in his service. As to myself, it is of 
little consequence what form of government is established, 
as I live under that of the Gods. Yet I should be sorry 
to see mankind perish, like a flock of sheep, for want of a 
wise and faithful shepherd. For as one man, who excels 
in virtue, modifies the popular state of a republic, so as to 
make it appear as if governed by a single individual, in the 
same manner a state under the government of such a man, 
wherein all things are directed to the common good, is 
what is properly called popular, or that of the people. I 
know, Euphrates said, you did not destroy Nero, Nor 
did*yoir, Euphrates ; nor you, Dion ; nor did I do it my- 
self : yet it is not charged to us as a fault, nor are we con- 
sidered as cowards for not having done something in the 
cause of liberty, though other philosophers have extirpated 
so many tyrannies. As to myself, I resisted the power of 
Nero, whilst under the most unjust accusations, and I op- 
posed the cruel Tigellinus to his beard. In the assistance 
I gave Vindex, I aimed a blow against the power of 
Nero, but I will not on that account assert I put down 
the tyrant, nor proclaim you for not having done so, more 
effeminate than what is becoming the character of philoso- 
phers, A philosopher, I know, may utter whatever he 



289 

pleases; at the same time I think he will take care not to 
utter -any thing contrary to reason and prudence. When a 
man of consular authority meditates a blow against a ty- 
rant, he should take care not to engage in such a business 
till the enemy was off his guard; and next, to have the 
best possible pretext for avoiding every appearance of per- 
jury. He who takes up arms against a man who com- 
mands an army, to whom his subjects are bound by their 
oaths of allegiance to do all they can in his defence, should 
first justify himself in the eyes of the Gods, in order to 
secure their approbation in case of violating his oath. He 
should next have many friends, for such high objects are 
not to be effected without great assistance; and he should 
have money to secure the powerful, where the object to 
be attacked is master of the world. Consider, then, what 
delays and time it will take to do all this. However, re- 
solve on all these things* as you please : for our part we 
will make no inquiry concerning them, from an idea that 
the Emperor himself has well considered the state of them 
in his own mind, and fouud all seconded by good fortune, 
independent of his own efforts. But what will you say to 
the following reflexion ? He who was Emperor yesterday, 
and received the crown from several cities in these temples, 
and published laws by the voice of the common cryer with 
as much celebrity as justice, is the very man whom you 
now command, by the voice of the same cryer, to declare 
he will for the rest of his life live as a private man, be- 
cause he invaded the empire without due consideration. 
If he had accomplished his enterprise, he would have 
found faithful friends in all his first advisers ; if he changes 
his mind, he will find in them obstinate enemies. 

CHAP. XXXVI. 

THE Emperor approved of what he heard, and said, If, 
Apollonius, you had been in my breast, you co«ld not 

u 



«90 

have better expressed my feelings. I will follow your ad- 
vice, as I think every word you have uttered is divine, 
Tell me, then, 1 pray thee, what a good prince ought to 
do. What you ask, said Apollonius, I cannot teach ; for 
the art of government, of all human acquisitions, is the 
most important, but cannot be taught. However, I will 
tell you what, if you do, you will in my opinion do wisely. 
Look not on that as wealth which is piled up in heaps, for 
what is it better than a heap of sand? nor on that which 
arises from taxes,* which men pay with tears ; for the 
gold so paid lacketh lustre, and is black. You will make 
a better use of your riches than ever sovereign did, if you 
employ them in supplying the necessities of the poor, and 
securing the property of the rich. Fear the power of 
doing every thing you wish, for under this apprehension 
you will use it with more moderation. Do not lop away 
such ears of corn as are tall and most conspicuous, for 
herein the maxim of Aristotle is unjust : but harshness 
and cruelty of disposition weed out of your mind, as you 
would tares and darnel out of your corn. Shew yourself 
terrible to all innovators in the state, yet not so much in 
the actual infliction of punishment, as in the preparation 
for it. Acknowledge the law to be the supreme rule of 
your conduct; for you will be more mild in the making of 
laws, when you know you are to be subject to them your- 
self. Reverence the Gods more than ever, for you have 
received great things at their hands, and have still much to 
ask. In what concerns the public, act like a prince ; and 
in what relates to yourself, like a private man. In what 
light you ought to consider the love of gambling, of wine 



* When his son Titiis blamed him for the tax he had laid upon urine, 
he applied to his nose a piece of the money received in the first pay- 
ment, and asked him, " Num odoie offenderetur ?" But it appears, 
when he opened his finaucial budget, he forgot his friend Apollonius's 
advice. 



291 

ind women, I need not to speak to you, who from your 
youth never liked them. You have two sons, both, ac- 
cording to report, of good dispositions ; keep them, I pray 
you, under strict discipline, for their faults will be charged 
to your account. Use authority, and even threats, if neces- 
sary ; and let them know that the empire is to be consi- 
dered not as a matter of common right, but as the reward 
of virtue ; and that it is to be their inheritance only by a 
perseverance in well-doing. Pleasures become, as it were, 
denizens of Rome, are many in number, and should be 
restrained with great discretion ; for it is a hard matter to 
bring over at once an entire people to a regular mode of 
living. It is only by degrees a spirit of moderation can be 
instilled into the mind, and it is to be done sometimes by a 
public correction, and sometimes by one so private as to 
conceal the hand which does it. Suppress the pride and 
luxury of the freed men and slaves under your subjection, 
and let them understand that their modesty should keep 
pace with their master's greatness. I have but one more 
observation to make, and that relates to the governors sent 
out to rule the several provinces of the empire. I do not 
mean such governors as you will send out yourself (for you 
will only employ the deserving) but those who are chosen 
by lot ; for the men so sent out ought to be suited (as far 
as can be made consistent with that mode of election) to 
the several countries over which they are appointed to pre- 
side. They who understand Greek should be sent to 
Greece ; and they who understand Latin, to such countries 
as use that language. I will now tell you why I say this. 
Whilst I was in Peloponnesus, the governor of that pro- 
vince knew nothing of Greek, nor did the people know 
any thing of him. Hence arose innumerable mistakes; 
for the people in whom he confided, suffered him to be 
corrupted in the distribution of justice, and to be treated 
more like a slave than the governor. 1 have said now what 
has occurred to me to-day ; if auy thing else occurs, we 

u 2 



292 

shall resume the conversation at another time. At pre- 
sent discharge your duty to the republic, to the end you 
may not appear more indulgent to those under your autho- 
rity than what is consistent with that duty. 



CHAP. XXXVII. 

UPON this Euphrates said,* I agree to every thing pro- 
posed; for what else can I do when the masters have 
spoken ? But, O King, (for still one observation remains 
to T>e made) approve and countenance that philosophy 
which is consonant to nature, and shun that which affects 
to carry on a secret intercourse with celestial beings ; for 
they who entertain such unsound notions of the Gods, fill 
us with nothing but pride and vanity. This, you see, was 
directly levelled against Apollonius, who, without conde- 
scending to make any reply, departed with his companions 
the moment he ended his discourse. But when the Em- 
peror perceived that Euphrates was going to take greater 
liberties with the character of Apollonius, he interposed, 
and said, Introduce such magistrates as are to enter into 
office, and let my council take some form. It was thus 
that Euphrates hurt himself by his imprudence with the 
Emperor, who ever after looked on him as a jealous 
meddling man, who spoke in favour of democracy, not ac- 
cording to his own sentiments, but as he thought they 
would be in opposition to Apollonius. Notwithstanding 



* Euphrates is several times, says Lardner r mentioned by Philos- 
tratus : but it has been observed by learned men, that Euphrates has 
a good character from the younger Pliny, and from Epictetus, who 
have never mentioned Apollonius, and from Eunapius. Eusebius has 
made just remarks upon the differences between Apollonius and Eu- 
phrates, and fails not to observe, that Euphrates was in his time a very 
celebrated philosopher, who continued long in great esteem. 



293 

the Emperor did not remove him from his councils, nor 
shew him any mark of his displeasure. He continued to 
love Dion, though he did not approve of his being of the 
same opinion with Euphrates. Dion deserved to be loved, 
as he was a man affable in conversation, an enemy to all 
disputes, and who in his discourse instilled that pleasant- 
ness which is breathed from the perfumes in a sacrifice : 
in short, of all men living he was the readiest in speech 
and the quickest in reply. But Vespasian loved Apollo- 
nius, and had great delight in hearing him talk of what 
antiquities he saw in his travels, of the Indian Phraotes, 
of the rivers and wild beasts found in India, and, above all, 
when he spoke of what was to be the future state of the 
Roman world, as communicated to him by the Gods. 
As soon, however, as the affairs of Egypt were settled, he 
determined on taking his departure ; but before he did so 
he expressed a wish that Apollonius should go with him, 
which was declined on his part, as he said he had not seen 
Egypt as he ought, nor as yet conversed with the Gymno- 
sophists. He added, that he was desirous to compare the 
learning of the Egyptians with that of the Indians, and to 
drink of the source of the Nile. When the Emperor un- 
derstood he was determined on making a journey into 
Ethiopia, he said, Will you not remember me ? I will, 
said Apollonius, if you continue to be a good prince, 
and to be mindful of us. 



CHAP. XXXVIII. 

AS soon as all the proper sacrifices were performed, the 
Emperor gave Apollonius leave publickly to ask what pre- 
sents he chose. Apollonius, like one who seemed disposed 
to make full use of his permission, said, And what pre- 
sents do you mean to give me, O King ? Ten talents at 
this time, said the Emperor, and all I have when you come 



294 

to Rome. Then, said Apollonius, I will be as careful of 
what you have, as if it was my own, and will not be pro- 
digal of what must one day be mine ; at the same time, 
I request, O Emperor ! you may attend to these men, 
who will not despise your gifts ; in saying this he particu- 
larly glanced at Euphrates. Whereupon, Vespasian bid 
both Euphrates and Dion ask boldly what they wished. 
On hearing this, Dion blushed, and said, reconcile me to 
my master Apollonius, for having contradicted him, but 
it was the first time of my Hie. The Emperor praised him 
for this acknowledgment, and said, I asked the favour 
yesterday, and it is done : now demand whatever you 
please. To this, Dion replied, Lasthenes of Apamea, a 
town in Bithynia, formerly studied philosophy with me ; 
afterwards a passion for the uniform of a soldier and a 
military life took possession of him ; he now wishes, I hear, 
to return to his philosophical pursuits, and all the request 
I make, is, that he may get his discharge, since he desires 
it. You will not, I am sure, refuse me the indulgence of 
contributing to make him a good man, nor him the liberty 
of living in what manner he pleases. The moment the 
Emperor heard it, he said, Let him be discharged, but 
first let him receive the rewards due to the Emeriti,* be- 
cause he loves you and philosophy. Afterwards he turned 
to Euphrates, who had put his memorial in writing, which 
he gave to the Emperor to read when alone ; but Vespa- 
sian, anxious to give Apollonius and all present an oppor- 
tunity of canvassing it, read it aloud. It appeared from 
the memorial, that Euphrates made several requests, of 
which some were relative to himself and some to other 
people ; but all had money, either directly or indirectly, for 



* When the soldiers had served out their time, the foot twenty 
years, and the horse ten, they were called Emeriti, and obtained their 
discharge. Adams. 



295 

their object. Apollonius only smiled, and said, And how 
came you, Euphrates, to speak so much in favour of a 
republican form of government, who had so much to ask 
from a monarch ? This is all I could find touching the 
subject of difference subsisting between *Apollonius and 
Euphrates. 



CHAP. XXXIX. 

AFTER the Emperor's departure from Egypt, Euphrates 
and Apollonius came to an open rupture ; the former gave 
full vent to his passion without sparing any reproaches, the 
latter conducted himself like a philosopher, and answered 
all that he said with the coolest reason. The cause of the 
altercation may be collected from the letters of Apollonius 
to Euphrates, of which many are still extant ; it appears 
from them to have arisen from Euphrates not having 
acted in a manner becoming a philosopher. As to myself, 
I will dismiss the man, for it is not my business to blame 
him, but to make those acquainted with the life of Apol- 
lonius who were before ignorant of it. In regard to what 
is said of a billet of wood (with which it appears Eu- 
phrates threatened him, without daring to throw it) the 
forbearance he shewed on that occasion is ascribed by 
many to the commanding influence of Apollonius ; how- 
ever it was, I give the credit of it to his good sense, by 
which he subdued that anger which had almost subdued 
him. 



CHAP. XL. 

APOLLONIUS thought Dion's philosophy savoured too 
much of the rhetorician, and was too much adapted to 
the ear ; and for this he rebukes him in his epistles, in 



296 

these words, " Use your flute and lyre to flatter your hear* 
ers with, and not your eloquence." Besides, in many.pas- 
sages of his letters to Dion, he blames the affected orna- 
ments of his style, and the arts he used to catch the atten- 
tion of the people. 



CHAP. XLI. 

I SHALL now explain the cause why Apollonius ceased 
visiting and conferring with the Emperor after this inter- 
view, though often invited and written to for that purpose. 
Nero gave liberty to Greece, and performed a work more 
glorious than what was expected from the general tenor 
of his character. The consequence was, that the towns 
flourished and resumed their ancient attic and doric man- 
ners : to which may be added, that a harmony sprung up 
among them unknown even in their best days. Of this 
liberty, that produced such good effects, Vespasian deprived 
them, under the pretence of some disturbance or other 
which did not require such a mark of his displeasure. 
All this was considered by the sufferers, and Apollonius, 
in a light more severe than what was becoming a govern- 
ment founded on justice and equity. Hence the following 
letters to the Emperor. 

" Apollonius to the Emperor Vespasian, health. 

" You have enslaved Greece, as fame says, by which you 
imagine you have done more than Xerxes, without calling 
to mind that you have sunk yourself below Nero, who 
freely renounced that which he had. Farewel." 

To the same. 
" You who have, in anger to the Greeks, reduced a free 
people to slavery, what need have you of my conversa- 
tion? Farewel." 



297 

To the same. 

" Nero in sport gave liberty to Greece, of which you in 
seriousness have deprived them, and reduced them to sla- 
very. Farewel." 

Insinuations such as these, caused the misunderstanding 
between Apollonius and Vespasian. Yet when he heard 
that in all other respects he governed his people well, he 
did not hide his joy, as he considered much was gained by 
his accession to the empire. 

CHAP. XLII. 

AMONG the wonderful things done by Apollonius, we 
are not to omit what follows. There was a certain man 
had a tame lion, whom he led about with a string like a 
dog. This lion used to fawn not only on his keeper, but 
on all who came near him. He walked with him through 
the several towns, and went with him into the temples, a 
liberty with which he was indulged as he came under the 
description of clean animals. He never would lick the 
blood of victims, nor touch their flesh, even when they 
were skinned and cut into pieces ; but his delight was in 
cakes of honey, and in bread, and confectionary of all 
kinds, and dressed meats. One day, as Apollonius was 
sitting in the temple, the lion approached him,* fawning 
on his knees, and paying him more attention than any 
other person, all which the spectators supposed was done 
to get something to eat. Apollonius, on this, said, the 
lion wishes me to inform you whose soul it is that ani- 
mates him. It is the soul of Amasis, who was formerly 



* This story of the lion brings to our remembrance the accounts 
given in the life of Pythagoras of the Dauniau bear and the Tarentum 
ox ; and is another instance of his strict adherence to the M§tempsy-» 
chosis of Pythagoras. 



298 

King of Egypt in the district of Sais. The moment the 
lion heard this, he roared in a piteous strain, couching on 
his knees, and bursting into tears at the same time. 
Whereupon, Apollonius treating him with kindness, said, 
He should be sent to Leontopolis,* and there placed in 
the temple, as methinks it is unbecoming a King, though 
transformed into the most royal of beasts, to wander up 
and down the world like a mendicant. In consequence 
of this, the priests met, and offered sacrifice to Amasis ; 
then dressing out the lion with collars and garlands, they 
sent him into the interior parts of Egypt, accompanying 
him all the way with the sound of flutes, the singing of 
hymns and verses made for the occasion.^ 



CHAP. XLIII. 

APOLLONIUS, staying as long as he thought necessary 
at Alexandria, determined to visit the Upper Egypt, in order 
to converse with the Gymnosophists. Menippus, one of 
the number of those who, after completing their term of 
silence, were entitled to address others themselves, was 
left behind to watch Euphrates. Dioscorides, whose con- 
stitution was unable to bear the fatigues of a long journey, 
was advised by Apollonius not to go. He then assembled 
the rest (for though many deserted him at Aricia,J many 
had joined him since) with whom he talked of the journey 
he was about to undertake, in the following manner. " I 



* A town of the lower Egypt, in the Delta, on that branch of the 
Kile called Busiriticus, and denominated so from the lions there kept 
as objects of religious worship — at this day Tellessabe, or Hill of the 
Lion. 

t Voila (says Du Pin, at the conclusion of this tale) la plus extrava* 
gante fable qu'on puisse imaginer. 

t Where he stopt on his way to Rome in the time of Nero. 



299 

think it right, my friends, to use an Olympic exordium 
with you. The people of Elis (on the approach of 
the Olympic Games) exercise their athletae for the space 
of thirty days in their own town. The people of Delphi 
and Corinth, at the celebration of their respective games, 
address all those who are to contend at them in this 
manner, " Enter the stadium, and shew yourselves men 
worthy of victory." The Eleans, when come to Olympia, 
thus address the athletae, " You, who have endured 
labours fit for the men who come to Olympia, and have 
not been guilty of any mean or illiberal action — go on 
boldly : but ye who are not so qualified, go where you 
please." Such of his disciples as understood the force of 
this address, of whom the number amounted to twenty, re- 
mained behind with Menippus* at Alexandria. The re- 
mainder, whose number did not exceed ten, after offering 
their prayers and sacrifices to the Gods for a good journey, 
set out towards the Pyramids, mounted on camels, with the 
Nile on their right. They went in boats, at times, in order 
to see all that was worth their notice. No city, or temple, 
or sacred spot, in Egypt, was passed by unobserved. An in- 
terchange of knowledge every where took place between 
them and such leamed Egyptians as they happened to 
meet. The vessel in which Apollonius sailed on the Nile, 
resembled the sacred galley of legation.*)* 



* Whom Apollonius left at Alexandria, to watch the motions of Eu- 
phrates. 

t ©Eajjjf — the name given to the ship in which the Athenians made 
their annual procession to Dclos. 



BOOK VI.— Contents. 

Description of Ethiopia — Apollonius visits the Gymno- 
sophists — Conversation with them — An Account of 
the Nile, and its Cataracts — His Letter to Titus 
after the taking of Jerusalem — Return to Greece — 
Interview with Titus at Argos. 



CHAP. I. 

XtiTHIOPIA occupies the most western wing of all the 
land situate immediately under the sun's rays, as India does 
the most eastern. Near Meroe, it borders on Egypt, 
from whence stretching as far as Lybia Deserta, it termi- 
nates in the sea called by the poets, the Ocean, under 
which appellation is comprehended all the sea which sur- 
rounds the earth. It gives Egypt the Nile, which rising 
from Catadupa, carries down from Ethiopia all that mud 
and slime which we may say form the land of Egypt. 
Neither Ethiopia, nor any other much celebrated part of 
the continent can be compared in magnitude with India. 
Nay, if all Egypt was added to Ethiopia, (which I think, 
is done by the Nile) both of them together would not be 
equal in magnitude to the vast extent of India. The rivers, 
however, in each, are alike, if any one will take the trouble 
of comparing the peculiar phenomena of the Nile and 
Indus.* Both have their inundations in that season of the 
year when the land requires it most. Of all the rivers 



* That rains fall in Ethiopia as well as in India, Arrian says in his 
Indian History, he has no reason to doubt, seeing in all other respectSi 
India so much resembles it. 



301 

■we know, they alone have the crocodile and the hippopo- 
tamus ; and the account given of their religious ceremo- 
nies, is similar in both, for what are performed on the 
banks of the one river, are performed on those of the 
other. That the nature of the soil in the two countries is 
alike, appears from their producing the same kinds of 
spices ; as also the lion and elephant, of which the latter 
is taken, and put to servile offices. In them we find 
wild beasts and black men,* that are to be found no where 
else. In both, we meet with pygmies and cynocephali,*f- 
who possess different modes of barking, and other mar- 
vellous things besides. The griffons of India, and the 
ants of Ediiopia, though not exactly shaped alike, are 
possessed of the same instinct, according to the account 
given of them. In both countries, they are the guardians 
of the gold, and attached to the soil which produces it. 
Of these things I shall say no more, but return to Apol- 
lonius, who is the subject of our history. 

CHAP. II. 

WHEN Apollonius arrived on the confines of Ethiopia 
and Egypt, at a place called Sicaminus,J he found gold 



* The natives of India and Ethiopia are not much different in their 
features and complexion. Arrian. 

t Though Philostratus is pleased here only to call the cynocephali 
barkers, and to reckon them, as he does, black men, and the pygmies 
among the wild beasts of those countries; yet Ctesias, from whom 
Philostratus has borrowed a great deal of his natural history, styles 
them men, and makes them speak, and to perform most notable feati 
in merchandising. Tyson's Inquiry concerning Pygmies, 

Tyson's design is to shew, that not only the pygmies, but the cyno- 
tephali, and satyrs, and sphinges, were only apes and monkeys, and not 
men. 

% Sicaminus is called by Ptolemy, «p* orxajujvo?, and he is the only 
geographer, I find, who mentions it, and which he does immediately 

after 



30* 

in wedges unstamped and flax, and ivory, with several 
kinds of aromatic roots, perfumes and spices : all which 
lay piled up in heaps, in a place where four ways meet, 
without any guard whatever set over them. This must be 
accounted for, # as the custom remains even unto our 
days. The Ethiopians bring to sale the chief productions 
of their country ; and the merchants of Egypt, who come 
to purchase, bring in return, to the same place, such of 
their goods as are considered equivalent in value; and 
with them, of which they have a superfluity, they buy 
what they most stand in need of. The people inhabiting 
the frontiers of the two countries, are not quite black, but 
of a complexion partaking of each ; they are not so black 
as the Ethiopians, but blacker than the Egyptians. When 
Apollonius understood how the commerce of these nations 
was carried on, he said, our good friends the Greeks sup- 
pose they could not live, if Obolus did not beget Obolus, 
and if the goods they brought to market, (and which are 
most carefully guarded,) did not produce an enormous profit 
in their sordid dealings. And this species of traffic is car- 
ried on under such considerations as the following, namely, 
one man saying he has a daughter to marry, another, that 
he has a son just come of age, a third, that he has a large 



after noticing the nomos of Thebes, and Elethyia. The next stage 
from Syene is called Hiera Sycaminus, a sycamore tree. Travellers, 
says Bruce, in journeying through Egypt, must be obliged to take up 
their quarters under a tree for want of towns. 

* A custom similar to this prevailed among the Seres, who, as Pliny 
says, avoid the company of all men at the very time they are desirous 
of entering into commercial dealings with them. On this passage, 
there is a marginal note in Philemon. Holland's translation of Pliny's 
Nat. Hist, to the following effect, " Even at this day they set abroad 
their wares with the prices, upon the shore, and goe their waes : then 
the forain merchants come, and lay down the money, and have away 
the merchandise : and so depart without any communication at 
all." 








siuii of money to pay, a fourth, that he has a house to 
build, and the last of all declaring that it would be scan- 
dalous in him, a merchant, not to die richer than his father. 
How happy would it be for the world if riches were not 
held in such estimation ? and if equality of rank flourished 
more than it does. Iron would remain black, if men 
lived in harmony and good will ; and the whole earth 
would appear like one great family. 

CHAP. Ill, 

WHILST Apollonius talked according to his custom, as 
the casual circumstances of the moment administered to 
his discourse, he entered the district of Memnon. # His 
guide happened to be a young Egyptian, of whom 
Damis gives the following account. His name, he 
says, was Timasion, a youth of great beauty, who had 
just passed the age of puberty. He was, besides, of 
singular chastity ; but his step-mother, who had fallen in 
love with him, and was unsuccessful in her passion, had 
kindled his father's anger against him. The charges she 
brought against him were of a different nature from those 
alledged against Hippolytus by Phaedra ; in short, she ac- 
cused him of being a Pathic, as one who delighted more 
in the company of men than women. This was the cause 
of the young man's quitting the town of Naucratis,f in 
which the aforesaid transaction happened, and settling near 
Memphis, where he bought a miserable skiff, with which 
he plied s a boatman on the Nile. Whilst in this em- 
ployment, he saw Apollonius sailing up the river ; as soon 



* Memnonius nomos — called Memnonium, which formed a part of 
the city of Thebes, in the higher Egypt, on the west side of the 
Nile. 

t Naucratis, a town of Egypt on the left side of the Canopic 
mouth of the Nile, built by the Milesians. It gave birth to Athenaeu? 



304 

as he perceived that the vessel was full of sages, a circum- 
stance which he conjectured by their singular garb, and 
the books they had in their hands, he asked leave to be one 
of their number, as a lover of wisdom. Whereupon 
Apollonius said, the youth is of a good character, and de- 
serves what he asks, and then in a low tone of voice, he 
gave those near him an account of his step-mother's con- 
duct, whilst the young man was doing all he could to get 
near the boat. As soon as the boats approached, Tima- 
sion jumped into Apollonius's one, and after a few words 
to his own pilot respecting freight, &c. saluted him and 
his companions. Apollonius requested him to sit opposite 
to him, and addressed him in the following manner: 
Young Egyptian (for you are, I suppose of this country,) 
tell us the good and evil of your life, that you may be par- 
doned for any thing you have done wrong by reason of 
your youth, and praised for what you have done well ; 
and may philosophize with me and my friends. When 
Apollonius discovered that the youth blushed, and changed 
colour, at one time as if disposed to speak, and at ano- 
ther as if not, he the more urged his request, just as if he 
had no foreknowledge of his character. The youth, as 
soon as he recovered a little his presence of mind, cried 
out, O ye Gods! what shall I say of myself? I am not 
wicked, and yet I know not whether I can call myself 
good, as little or no praise can attach to the negative vir- 
tue of not having acted ill. Excellently observed, said 
Apollonius, you speak as if instructed by the Indians, as 
if you had learnt that sentiment from the lips of the divine 
Iarchas himself; for it is his own. But how, or from 
whom have you received such opinions ? for you appear as 
if afraid to oflfend. When the youth began to speak of 
his step-mother, and of the resistance he made to her pas- 
sion, a shout was raised by all present, as if Apollonius 
had foretold it by assistance of his demon. Upon which, 
Timasion suddenly turning about, said, What is the mat- 



, 



306 

ter, my friends, for I think, what I have said, is as far 
from exciting wonder, as it is from exciting laughter. 
Damis immediately interposing, said, the cause of our 
surprise, I believe, you are not acquainted with : but as 
to what particularly concerns yourself, you are worthy of 
our praise from not thinking you have done any thing which 
deserves it. Then Apollonius said to the youth, Do you 
sacrifice to Venus ? Yes, by Jupiter, replied Timasion, 
and that daily, for I think her a Goddess deeply interested 
in affairs both human and divine. As Apollonius was 
much pleased with what he heard, he says, Let us unani- 
mously decree the youth a crown on account of a conti- 
nency far exceeding that of Hippolytus the son of Theseus, 
who slighted Venus from perhaps never being affected by 
the general passion, and was one in whose breast Love, 
with his smiles, never dwelt, whose disposition was austere 
and unbending. But Timasion, who has owned himself 
to be the votary of the Goddess, opposed the solicitations 
of a woman who loved him ; Timasion fled, from an ap- 
prehension of the resentment of the Goddess, had he given 
way to a criminal amour. The entertaining an aversion 
for any particular deity, as that of Hippolytus for Venus, 
is not to be reckoned as a virtue. On the contrary, I 
think it highly praise- worthy to speak well of all the Gods, 
and at Athens more than at any other place, where altars 
are raised to the unknown Gods.* Such were the philo- 
sophical reflections made by Apollonius on the subject of 



* For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with 
this inscription, To the unknown God. Whom, therefore, ye ignoranthj 
worship, him ctclare I unto you—Acts of the Apostles. 

The Athenians, says Dr. Franklin, the learned translator of Lucian, 
not content with worshipping an infinite number of local and tutelary 
deities, created an altar, and dedicated it r*> ayvotru &ta> — to the un- 
known God ; a kind of tacit acknowledgment that they were dissatis- 
fied with all their deities, and had some imperfect notion of a true 
God, far superior to them. 

X 



306 

Timasion, whom he called Hippolytus on account of the 
way he behaved to his step-mother. It was observed that 
the youth paid particular attention to his person, and per- 
formed with grace all the gymnastic exercises. 

CHAP. IV. 

UNDER the direction of this youth, Apollonius and 
his companions approached the spot sacred to Memnon, 
of whom Damis gives the account that follows. He says, 
he was the son of Aurora, who died, not at Troy, where 
by the way, he never came, but in Ethiopia, where he 
reigned for five generations. The Ethiopians are the 
longest-lived of all mortals,* and still lament Memnon, 
as a youth cut off by a premature death. The place 
where he was laid, is said to resemble an ancient forum, 
like what is found in towns long desolate, where we see 
broken columns, ruined walls, decayed seats, mutilated 
thresholds, and figures of Hermes worn away, partly by 
the hand, and partly by time. The statue of Memnonf 



* Hence some of the people of Ethiopia have obtained the name of 
Macrobii. 

t Tacitus says, Germanicus saw the celebrated statue of Memnon, 
which though wrought in stone, when played on by the rays of the 
sun, returns a vocal sound.—In Desraontier's Letters on Mythology, 
there is one of the prettiest accounts we have of this statue, which I 
will give in his own words, " On eleva dans la suite une statue de mar- 
bre noir, qui representait Memnon as3is, les mains elevees & la bouche 
entr' ouverte, comme s'il allait parler. A peine le premier rayon de 
1'Aurore frappit-il le corps de la statue, qu'elle prenait un air riant & 
paraissait s'animer ; mais aussitot que le rayon atteignoit la bouche, U 
en sortait un son harmonieux et ten'ire, qui semblait dire Bon-jour, 
ma mere : le soir, au moment ou l'Aurore allait eclairer l'autre hemi- 
sphere, un soupir faible et plaintif semblait dire ma mere adieu. 
So to the sacred sun in Memnon's fane 
Spontaneous concords quired the matin strain. 

Botanic Garden. 
See note on Memnon's lyre by Dr. Darwin. 



307 

looked towards theorising sun, was made of black marble, 
but had no beard. The feet were united according to the 
fashion of sculpture in the time of Dedalus. The hands 
rested on the base on which it was placed ; and though 
sitting, seemed as if going to rise. The posture, the in- 
telligence of the eyes, and whatever is said of the mouth, 
as in the act of speaking, are circumstances of wonder 
only at the time when it is stricken by the sun's rays, for at 
no other do they appear as producing any effect to those 
who are ignorant of its particular mechanism. But the 
moment the sun's beams fall on it (which they always do at 
his rising,) our travellers could not withhold their astonish- 
ment. For as soon as they touched the mouth it uttered a 
sound,* the eyes brightened, and seemed to look on the 
light like those who are pleased with it. Then it was, 
they understood the meaning of its being represented in 
the act of rising, which was in imitation of mortals, 
who, in a standing posture, pay their adorations to the 
God of light. After sacrificing to the Ethiopian Sol, and 
the Eoan-j- Memnon, the particular appellations given by 
the priests to these deities, the one being called Ethiopian J 
from producing heat, and the other Eoan from his mo- 
ther Eos, or Aurora. Apollonius and his friends mount- 



* Philostratus, says Savary, in his Letters on Egypt, misled by his 
love of the marvellous, sets no bounds to his credulity, nor does Sava- 
ry, I will add, set any bounds to the liberality of his translation. 
Here it is — " The colossus of Memnon, though of ^'one, was gifted 
with speech : at the rising of the sun, joyous to behold again his mo* 
ther, he saluted her in a pleasing voice. Towards the setting sun, he 
expressed his sorrow in a sad and mournful tone. " This marble had 
the property of shedding tears at pleasure," &c. &c. 

t Memnon called Eoan from h»s — Aurora who was his mother. 
Homer calls him the son of Aurora, by which, I suppose, he only indi- 
cates the east from whence he came. — However, the Memnon of the 
text is not Homer's Memnon. 

t Ai0« — uro. — 

X 2 



308 

ed on camels proceeded to the dwellings of the Gymno-* 
sophists. 



CHAP. V. 

THEY proceeded not far, till they met a person dressed 
after the manner of Memphis, who seemed more like an 
idle lounger than one who had any decided object in view. 
Damis asked him who he was, and why he sauntered so 
up and down ? To whom Timasion said, you had better 
inquire of me ; for I fear he will not at once tell you his 
situation, from being ashamed of it : but as I know the 
man, and feel for his condition, I will tell you what 1 
know of him. He has committed an involuntary mur- 
der, and by the laws of Memphis in like cases provided, 
he must leave his country, and take shelter with the 
Gymnosophists, by whom, when purified and absolved, he 
may return home, but not till atonement has been made 
for his crime by visiting the tomb of the deceased, and 
offering there a sacrifice of blood of no costly value. 
Whilst excluded from the company of the Gymnosophists, 
he wanders through these borders till they take compassion 
on him as a penitent. And what opinion, said Apollo- 
nius, do these sages entertain of the fugitive? That I 
dont know, said Timasion, for he has been supplicating 
his pardon from them these seven months, and has not yet 
obtained it. I fear, returned Apollonius, you talk to me 
of men who have not too much wisdom to boast of, if 
they refuse expiating him ; men I fear who know not that 
Philiseus whom he put to death was descended from Tha- 
mus the Egyptian, who formerly ravaged the country of 
the Gymnosophists. Timasion, in astonishment, exclaim- 
ed, What's that you say ? Just what the young man did, 
said Apollonius. Thamus meditated formerly a change 
in the government of Memphis, for which, when repri- 



309 

manded by the Gymnosophists, and baffled in his purpose, 
he vented his fury, by ravaging the whole country, and 
plundering that which lay nearest Memphis. From this 
Thamus, in the thirteenth generation, is descended Philiseus 
now killed, accursed, it is to be supposed, in the eyes of 
all whose country he laid waste. And can these Gymno- 
sophists be considered as wise in not at once acquitting a 
man guilty only of but an involuntary crime, and a crime 
so much to their advantage, whom it was their duty to ho- 
nour with a crown, even had he perpetrated it by preme- 
ditation. Whereupon the young man in amazement said, 
And who are you, O stranger ? One whom you will find 
with the Gymnosophists, replied Apollonius. But since 
it js not lawful for me to address a man polluted with 
blood, desire him, I pray thee, to keep up his spirits, 
for he shall receive expiation of his crime, if he comes 
to where I shall lodge. As desired, the young man 
waited on Apollonius, who, after performing what cere- 
monies are enjoined for purification by Empedocles and 
Pythagoras, bid him go honje cleansed from all crimes. 



CHAP. VI. 

FROM the place where our travellers passed the night, 
they set out the morning after at sun-rise, and about mid- 
day arrived at the college of the Gymnosophists, who in- 
habited a small rising ground* not far from the banks of 
the Nile. In wisdom the Indians exceeded them as much 
as they did the Egyptians. The Gymnosophists wore a 
dress like the Athenians, who take such delight in basking 
in the sun. They found but few trees in that district, and 
the grove, in which the sages assembled for public bu- 



* In imitation of the Indians, from whom they are descend- 
ed. B. iii. c. 10. 



310 

siness, was not large. They had no general place of 
meeting for public worship, like the Indians : but we saw 
many chapels on different parts of the hill, constructed 
with that care which is peculiar to the Egyptians. What, 
above all things, forms the chief object of their worship, 
is the Nile, which they consider as both earth and water. 
They live in the open air, and consequently have neither 
cottage nor house. They have built a kind of caravansary, 
for the use of strangers, in shape like the small porticos 
which you meet with in Elis, where the athletae wait till 
they hear the meridian voice of the public cryer. 



CHAP. VII. 

HERE Damis notices a proceeding on the part of Eu- 
phrates, which it is impossible not to think puerile, and 
very much beneath the dignity of philosophy. He, having 
often heard that Apollonius intended to contrast the wis- 
dom of India with that of Egypt, sent one Thrasybulus, 
a Naucratite, to the Gymnosophists, for the express pur- 
pose of misrepresenting him. Thrasybulus, on his arrival, 
pretended he came to form a literary acquaintance with 
them ; he told them the Tyonean would soon be with 
them, whose coming would be attended with no little dan- 
ger, as it was his object to raise the character of the 
Indian sages (whom he was perpetually praising) at the 
expense of those of Egypt. He added, he came stored 
with arguments against their tenets, for that he allowed no 
influence to the sun, nor to the heavens, or the earth ;* but 



* When Iarchas, in the third book, says, that the doctrine of the 
Metempsychosis was delivered by Pythagoras to the Greeks, but by 
the Indians to the Egyptians, there is no doubt of his chiefly looking 
to the Ethiopians who passed from India into that part of Egypt which 
was called Ethiopia afterwards. 



311 

gave them whatever motion, force, and place, he liked 
himself. After the Naucratite made these observations he 
took his leave of them. 



CHAP. VIII. 

THE Gymnosophists,* though they concluded whatever 
was said by Thrasybulus as true, did not totally decline 
all intercourse with Apollonius when he arrived: they 
affected, however, to be engaged in matters of great mo- 
ment, and to be entirely taken up with them. They said, 
they would speak with him when at leisure, and that they 
were very well acquainted with the cause of his journey. 
The person they sent to receive him ordered him and his 
companions to wait their pleasure under the portico. 
Whereupon Apollonius replied, I beg you may name no 
covered place to me, as the climate here permits all to go 
naked. (In this reply he glanced at the Gymnosophists, 
who were naked from necessity, and not from virtue) Apol- 
lonius continued, I am not surprised at their ignorance of 
what I wish, or of what brought me here ; but I must say, 
such questions were not asked me by the Indians. Mean- 
while he rested under a tree, and allowed his companions 
to make what inquiries seemed good to them. 



* Apollonius having conversed with the Gymnosophists of India be- 
fore his arrival here, was never tired with testifying how much he ad- 
mired them. The Gymnosophists of Ethiopia, who had got a hint of 
this from Euphrates, affected to mention those of India in a scornful 
manner; upon which he answered them with a great deal of freedom, 
as you will perceive in the sequel, wherein he says, that they slan- 
dered the Indians only with a design to make the world believe that it 
was not for some shameful reasons that they were forced to leave India 
to go and settle in Ethiopia. See book iii. chap. 20. 



312 



CHAP. IX. 



AFTER this, Damis, taking Timasion apart, asked him, 
when alone, in what the Gymnosophists were wise ? (as it 
is probable you must know from having often conversed 
with them). In many important matters, replied he. If 
that is so, said Damis, I think the manner in which they 
treat us is not a proof of their wisdom ; for neither to con- 
verse with such a man on the subject of philosophy, nor to 
behave to him with any attention, what can it be called but 
supercilious pride ? I think it nothing else, said Timasion; 
and yet it is a pride which I did not perceive in my two 
former visits : besides, their general character is that of 
being kind and civil to all visitors. I believe it is not 
more than fifty days since Thrasybulus visited them; and 
though he is not very eminent in philosophical pursuits, he 
was received by them with the greatest politeness, from 
only saying he was one of Euphrates's disciples. What's 
that you say, young man, says Damis ? Have you seen 
Thrasybulus, the Naucratite, in this college ? I have, said 
he ; and, what is more, I carried him back in my boat. 
Now, by Minerva, cried Damis, enraged, I see how it is all 
his contrivance. What I can tell you, said Timasion, is, 
that yesterday, when I asked that man who he was, he 
thought me unworthy of the secret : but if it is no mys- 
tery, tell me, I pray you, who he is; as perhaps I shall 
be able to throw some light on what you wish to be in- 
formed of. The moment Damis said he was the Tyanean, 
Timasion exclaimed, The secret is now out. When 
Thrasybulus was sailing with me down the Nile, the an- 
swer he made me as to the cause of his visit to the Gym- 
nosophists was not one which deserved much commendation, 
for he said in it that he had filled their minds with such sus- 
picions of Apollonius, as would make him but little relished 



313 

by them when he came. As to myself, I know nothing of 
any difference between them ; but this I know, that it is 
the part of a mind not only effeminate, but uninformed, 
to have recourse to false accusations. I shall soon, how- 
ever, learn, by talking with the Gymnosophists, what they 
think of it, as I am on good terms with them. Timasion 
waited on Apollonius in the evening, and said, he had just 
paid them a visit, without saying any thing more ; at the 
same time he privately whispered Damis that they would 
be with him next day, full of all the suspicions instilled 
into them by Thrasybulus. Spending the rest of the day 
in conversation which was not worth being committed to 
paper, they took their frugal meal, and went to rest. 



CHAP. X. 

AS soon as it was day, Apollonius, after first paying his 
adorations to the sun, according to his custom, stood like 
one wrapt in meditation. Whilst in this serious posture, 
one of the youngest of the Gymnosophists came running 
to him and said, We are coming. You are doing what 
you ought, replied Apollonius, for I have travelled from 
the sea to see you ; and so saying, he followed Nilus. 
When mutual salutations were passed (the Gymnosophists 
met him near the portico) he said, Where shall we hold 
our conference ? There, said Thespesion, shewing the 
place with his hand. Thespesion took the lead as chief 
and eldest of the Gymnosophists, who, like the Hellano- 
dicae,* followed him with a slow and solemn pace. As 
soon as all had taken their seats as chance directed (for 
little or no order was attended to on the occasion) they 



* Persons appointed to superintend the preparatory exercises of 
those who offered themselves to contend, and to be instructed in the 
laws of the Olympic Games by the keepers of the laws themselves. 



314 

cast their eyes on Thespesion as chief orator, who thus 
began : " Delphi and Olympia, you have seen, O Apol- 
lonius; Stratocles, of Pharos, told us he met you there. 
They who visit Delphi, it is said, are received with the 
sound of flutes, and songs, and hymns ; they are besides 
entertained with the representations of tragedies and come- 
dies; and, after all, are favoured with a combat of naked 
athletae. At Olympia the preceding circumstances are not 
allowed, as being unsuitable to, and unbecoming the place; 
and the simple representation alone of naked athletae is 
given to the spectators according to the institution of Her- 
cules. In proportion, then, as the Olympic Games are 
more manly than the Pythian, just so is the wisdom of the 
Ethiopians more orthodox than that of the Indians. The 
Indians make use of various attractions, like those who 
call together the spectators of Delphi ; but we are naked, 
like the athletae at Olympia. Here the earth spreads no 
carpeting under our feet ; it affords us no milk, no wine, 
as it does to the votaries of Bacchus ; nor does the air 
support us at a distance from its surface. We are humble 
people ; we live on the earth, and partake of whatever 
things it supplies us with of its own free will, without toil 
or labour, unaided by any magic influence. Besides, to 
shew that we are not unable to perform as wonderful 
things as the Indians, Thespesion said, " Salute the wise 
Apollonius, O Tree" (which words he addressed to the 
third elm from the one underneath which they were sitting). 
No sooner were the words uttered, than the tree* saluted 
him, speaking in a voice which was articulate, and re- 
sembling that of a woman. This sign was given for the 
purpose of depreciating the character of the Indians, from 



* This elm, it seems, spoke j bat the oaks in Dodona not only spoke, 
but prophesied. In truth, it was as easy to give them the powers of 
prophesying as of speech. 



315 

an expectation that Apollonius might be induced to alter 
his opinion of them, after hearing what could be said 
against their acts and opinions. Thespesion then con- 
tinued, It is enough for a wise man, that he is pure in 
whatever he eats, that he touches nothing which has had 
life, that he subdues all those irregular desires which make 
their approaches through the eyes, that he remove far from 
him envy; the mistress of injustice, which carries both 
hands and mind to the commission of all wrong. Truth 
requires no wonderful things to be performed, nor the use 
of any magic arts. Let us now turn our eyes, said 
Thespesion, to the Delphic Apollo, who dwells in the 
centre of Greece, and see him in the act of giving out his 
oracles. The petitioner who comes to Delphi for his an- 
swer, proposes a brief question, and the God, without any 
previous display of his power, simply tells what he knows, 
though he could at the same time shake all Parnassus to 
its centre, change Castalia's waters into wine, and stop the 
course of the river Cephisus : and though I say he could 
do all this, he plainly tells the truth without any parade or 
ostentation. We are not to think that offerings of gold, 
or of other sumptuous presents are made at his desire ; 
nor suppose that Apollo takes any pleasure in his temple, 
even supposing it had been built at double its present ex- 
pense. In former times the God had but an humble 
dwelling, nothing but a small cottage, in which the bee3 
are said to have stored their wax, and the birds their fea* 1 
thers. Frugality is the mistress of wisdom, and of truth 
likewise, which if you prize as you ought, you will be re- 
puted truly wise, and forget all the fables you heard 
amongst the Indians. As to the mere uttering of such 
words as, Do, or Do not — and J know, or know not — 
and this, or that, why is it necessary to express them in 
the voice of thunder, or with a mind in a state of phrenzy ? 
You have seen among the pictures of Prodicus the one 
in which Hercules is represented as a youth undetermined 



316 

what kind of life to chuse, placed as you may remember, 
between Pleasure and Virtue, and each in her turn striving 
to drag him to herself. Pleasure is deckt in the richest 
embroidery and purple, with rosy cheeks, curled locks, 
painted eyes, and golden slippers, in which she seems to 
pride herself. Virtue on the other hand appears as if tired 
with labour, homely in her looks, quite unadorned, bare- 
footed, in mean attire, in short almost naked, except where 
decency requires a covering. Now suppose, Apollonius, 
you were placed between the wisdom of the Indians and 
that of ours, and were to hear the one saying, You shall 
sleep on beds of roses, and drink milk, and live on honey ; 
You shall have besides as much nectar as you can desire, 
and wings to fly wherever you please ; You shall have also 
tripods and golden thrones to sit on, together with all your 
heart can wish for without any trouble ; and all the afore- 
said luxuries to wait on you of their own accord. But the 
wisdom we have learnt, inculcates a quite contrary doc- 
trine, for it says, We must lie on the ground, prostrate 
ourselves in the dust, go naked, and live as we do at pre- 
sent in the midst of toils and hardships, and must account 
nothing pleasant or agreeable which does not proceed from 
labour. It gives no indulgence to vain-boasting and pride, 
it pays no attention to dreams and visions, that lift men 
above the earth, and their condition on it. If then you 
make your choice like Hercules, and judge like a man, 
you will not despise the virtue called frugality, nor that 
temperance in living which is consonant to nature. Living 
in this manner, you will gain a victory greater than what 
has been obtained by the destruction of Lions, Hydras, 
Geryons, and Nessusses. On the other hand, if you prefer 
to what I have said the arts and contrivances of enchanters 
and magicians, You will flatter the eyes and ears of men, 
and will not be a whit wiser than others, and in the end 
become the laughing stock of the Egyptian Gymnoso- 
phist. 



317 



CHAP. XI. 

WHEN Thespesion ended his discourse, all eyes were 
fixed on Apollonius, whose disciples knew well what he 
would say ; but Thespesion and his companions waited in 
silent astonishment to hear what he should say. Apollo- 
nius, after commending Thespesion for the eloquence of 
his speech, and the gravity with which it was delivered, 
asked if he had any thing more to say, to which he re- 
plied, he had not. Then Apollonius asked if any other 
Egyptian had any thing to say ? Thespesion said, In hear- 
ing me, you have heard all. Whereupon Apollonius 
making a pause, and with his eyes as it were fixed on what 
he heard, thus began. The choice which Prodicus says, 
was made by Hercules in his youth, has been rightly, and 
philosophically explained by you, O wise Egyptians, but it 
concerns me not. I come not here to consult with you about 
the kind of life I am to chuse, having long before made my 
election ; but I am come in consequence of being older 
than you all (with the exception of Thespesion alone,) to 
recommend from my experience a choice of wisdom, if 
you have not already made one. Yet though I am ad- 
vanced both in years and wisdom, I will with pleasure sub- 
mit to your judgments the choice I have made, and will 
hope to make it appear that I have chosen wisely, and 
could not, considering every thing, have chosen better. 
In the doctrine of Pythagoras I observed something sub- 
lime ; I perceived the ineffable wisdom by which he not 
only knew what he was himself, but what he had been. 
In forming my opinion of it, I considered the purity with 
which he approached the altars, his abstinence from all 
animal food, his wearing no garments made of what had 
life, the manner in which he bridled his tongue,* and the 



* For the explauation of the proverb of &vq tvt yiurln — the bos in 
lingua consult Erasmus. Proverbium de iis qui corrupt! pecuuia (in 
qua olim bovis signum) loqui non auderent. 

J ' ■ - 1 > A u 



' / A '«' *"* *f *>ff«J 



fzr- > . -/ 



318 

rules he prescribed for its right government; in short, 
when I considered how he had laid down the rest of his 
philosophical system, founded as it were on oracles and 
truth itself; I flew at once, most excellent Thespesion, to 
his doctrines, without chusing a philosophy composed of 
two,* as you advise. Before, however, 1 made my final 
election, philosophy set before me her various sects, giv- 
ing each its peculiar ornament ; and commanded me to 
examine them all, and chuse whichever I thought the best. 
I was struck with the beauty of them all, which appeared 
not only awful, but divine ; yet there were some that 
seemed superior to the rest, and dazzled me by their ex- 
ceeding brightness. I however considered them all, all 
inspired me with confidence, and each in turn preferred her 
claims, and promised what she could give. One-f* said, she 
would procure every pleasure without any pain ; anotherj 
promised me repose only after toil ; and a third, pleasure^ 
mixed with labour. Pleasures were every where present- 
ed to my sight, and the reins hanging loose on appetite : 
my hands were left at liberty to grasp at wealth, and my 
eyes to behold every object : add to which a latitude was 
given to love and desire, and all the other train of pas- 
sions : yet there was one sect that boasted she was able to 
controul these unruly affections, whose temper was bold 
and reproving, and never inclined to spare vice. She was 
of such unspeakable beauty, as to have subdued Pytha- 
goras himself: she appeared not in the crowd with the 
others, but stood apart without speaking a word. As soon 
as she understood I was not addicted to any particular 
sect, and was as yet ignorant of her, she addressed me in 
these words, " O young man ! I am sad, and full of 



* Indian and Ethiopian. 

t That of Epicurus. 

% That of the Cynics and Stoics. 

$ That of Aristotle. 



o\9 

cares : it' any man conforms to my rule of life, he must 
remove from his table all animal food, and forget the use 
of wine : he must not trouble the cup of wisdom, which 
is set in all hearts abstaining from wine. He is to wear no 
garments made of either hair, or wool, his shoes must be 
of the bark of trees, and his sleep wherever he can get it. 
If I find him susceptible of love, I have deep pits, into 
which Nemesis, the minister of wisdom, will plunge him. 
But I am so severe to my own followers, that I have bri- 
dles made for curbing the tongue. Attend now, and I 
will tell you the rewards, which await him, who has made 
me their choice. He shall possess, without a rival, tem- 
perance and justice ; he shall be more a terror to tyrants 
than their slave, and shall be more acceptable to the Gods 
by his humble offerings of little value, than they who shed 
the blood of bulls. When once he is made pure, I will 
give him a knowledge of hereafter, and so fill his visual 
ray with light,* as to make him capable of distinguishing 
between Gods and heroes, and of appreciating duly all 
shadowy phantasms, whenever they assume the likenesses 
of mortals. This is the life I ha*c chosen, O learned 
Egyptians ! and which I have done in obedience to sound 
sense, and the precepts of Pythagoras ; in doing it, I think 
I have neither deceived myself, nor have been deceived by 
others. 1 have acted in every thing, as it became a philo- 
sopher, and have acquired all that was promised by philo- 
sophy. I have considered as a philosopher the origin of 
this art, and whence are derived its principles : and it has 
appeared to me to be the invention of men who excelled 
in divine knowledge, and searched deeply into the nature 
of the soul, whose immortal, and immutable essence, is 



* He pureed with euphrasie and rue 

The visual nerve, for be had much to see : 
And from the well of life three drops distill'd 



Milton. 



320 

the true source from whence it flows. I never thought we 
were indebted to the Athenians for the knowledge of the 
soul. The doctrine Plato taught at Athens with such di- 
vine eloquence, was there corrupted by the admission of 
certain opinions contrary to his, and totally erroneous. 
Hence it became necessary for me to inquire, whether any 
nation, or people existed, amongst whom not one or two 
men were of this, or that opinion concerning the nature of 
the soul ; but to find out where its immortality had in all 
times been the universal opinion. Under the direction of 
youth, and an ignorance which still adhered to me, I turn- 
ed my eyes towards you (for fame had spoken much in 
your favour,) and consulted my preceptor on the occasion, 
He spoke to me in the following manner, Suppose, says 
he, you were old enough to be in love, and happened to 
meet a beautiful youth, with whom you were enamoured ; 
and suppose you inquired who his parents were, and found 
that he was descended from men who had held high com- 
mands in the state, and had formerly superintended the 
public games, would you, I ask you, knowing this, say he 
was the son of a trierarch, or tribune : and if you were so 
weak as to make the assertion, could you imagine you 
would conciliate by it the object of your affection ; or is it 
not rather to be supposed that you would be considered as 
uncivil in giving him an ignoble line of ancestors in place 
of his own noble ones. Why do you who love the wis- 
dom of the Indians, call it rather by the name of its 
adopted, than its real parents ? and why do you give the 
Egyptians a greater advantage than they had formerly, 
when, it is said, the Nile run mixed with honey ? Such 
were the reasons that induced me to visit the Indians be- 
fore I came to you, first, considering them as men of sub- 
limer genius by living in a purer atmosphere, and next, as 
holding opinious of nature, and the Gods, more consonant 
to the truth, by reason of being nearer heaven, .and the 
fountain of an ethereal and vivyfying substance. As soon 



321 

as I came to them, I was affected by the force of their 
doctrine, as it is said, the Athenians were with the trage- 
dies of Eschylus. He was a tragic poet, who, finding his 
art rude and unadorned, diminished the number of persons 
composing the chorus, as too numerous, and abridged the 
dialogue, as too diffuse, from a dislike he had to the length 
of the monodies. He thought all murders were to pass 
behind the scenes, far removed from the sight of the au- 
dience. Improvements in the art such as I have mention- 
ed, let them not be considered of little consequence, be- 
cause we might suppose them discovered by one much 
inferior in talents to Eschylus. But this father of the 
stage, taking into consideration the style in which tragedy 
should speak ; and supposing, naturally, that it required a 
language adapted only to solemn pomp and sublimity, in- 
vented a dress suitable to the style and titles of its heroes. 
In making his performers appear in buskins, he gave them 
stature, and an heroic step ; and he was the first to dress 
them in a fashion suitable to the characters they represent- 
ed. For this, Eschylus is called the father of tragedy, 
and invoked, though dead, at the celebration of the Dio- 
nysia ; his tragedies are appointed to be acted by a public 
decree, and he still carries off the victory. The pleasure 
however arising from having not only corrected, but em- 
bellished tragedy, is but short-lived, for it lasts only the 
short space of a day, like the feasts of Bacchus ; but the 
pleasure which springs from a philosophy harmonized, as 
Pythagoras prescribed, and enriched with that divine tem- 
perature which his Indian friends gave it, is not of short 
duration, for it extends ad infinitum, and is unbounded by 
number. Attachment therefore to a philosophy so endow- 
ed and appointed, appears not to me unreasonable, such 
as the Indians represent it, beautifully arrayed, and seated 
in a high celestial machine. It is now time to make you 
see my reasons for loving the Indians, and why I think 
them both wise and happy. " I have seen men living upon 

Y 



322 

the earth and not upon it : defended without walls, having 
nothing, and yet possessing all things." If I utter enig- 
mas, the wisdom of Pythagoras allows it ; for he taught 
us their use, when he discovered that learning was the 
mistress of silence. You yourselves were the instructors 
of Pythagoras in his philosophy,* which you recommend- 
ed, at the time you sanctioned, and approved it as Indians. 
But now ashamed of what caused the earth's displeasure, 
which forced you to migrate to this country ,f you had ra- 
ther pass for any other people than Ethiopians come from 
India ; and you have done all in your power to effect it. 
In consequence of this you have laid aside all the orna- 
ments peculiar to Indians, as if with them you might lay 
aside the name of Ethiopians. You have worshipped the 
Gods more after the ritual of Egyptians than your own ; 
and you have used a most unbecoming language in talking 
of the Indians, just as if the blame cast on them, did not 
recoil on yourselves as their descendants. And this cus- 
tom, which began at the time of your changing their dress,J 
is not yet altered ; even to this day you are- giving speci- 
mens of a reproachful sarcastic style of conversation, in 
saying that the Indians have made no useful discovery, but 
only raised up apparitions, and spectres, and certain delu- 
sions, by which they fascinate the eyes and ears. It is only 
a proof of your folly when you judge of my wisdom, of 
which you are quite ignorant. As to myself, I will say 
nothing, I only wish I was such as the Indians think, who 



* Apulcius says, Pythagoras went from Chaldea to the Braehmans : 
these are wise persons, a nation of India, for which reason he visited 
their Gymnosophists. 

t B. iii, c. 20, 

J Here ApolloniHS censures the Gymnosophists of Ethiopia for quit- 
ting entirely the habit of the Indian Gymnosophists, by which they 
hoped to persuade the world that they were not from India, but origi- 
nally from Ethiopia. All this, says Bayle, is another proof that nei- 
ther the Indian, nor Ethiopian Gymnosophists went naked. 






323 

are a people I will never suffer to be treated with con- 
tumely. If you possess the candour and wisdom of the 
Himersean mau,* (who composed a palinodia on Helen, 
in spirit and language directly contrary to what he had be- 
fore written) and think there is any truth in what I say, 
you will without delay revise your judgments, and change 
your opinion. If the muses do not assist you in singing a 
palinodia, it was at least your duty to have spared men, 
whom the Gods think deserving of their favour, and who 
are not despised by them, though their offerings all consist 
in bloodless sacrifices. In your discourse, Thespesion, 
you alluded to the Pythian oracle, and to the plain and 
unadorned way in which it delivered its answers, and the 
example you produced in your favor, was taken from the 
temple built of wax and feathers. But in my opinion this 
was no proof of want of design, for the verse by which 
Apollo ordered his Delphic temple to be built, run thus, 
" Birds, bring your feathers, and you, bees, your wax," 
words which indicated, as well a form of building, as the 
building itself. However, the God himself, finding, as I 
think, such a building too small and unbecoming his wis- 
dom, wished to have another kind of edifice, one of a 
magnitude equal to what it is at this day, and of a hundred 
feet in dimensions. In one of the chapels constructed for 
him, he is said to have suspended birds of gold, whose 
voices possessed the sweet notes of Sirens. To adorn 



* Stesichorus, a lyric poet of Himera in Sicily. — It is said he lost 
his sight for writing invectives against Helen, and that he recovered 
the same only on condition of recanting what he had written. He was 
the first inventor of that fable of the horse and the stag, which Horace 
and some other poets have imitated, and which, it is said, he wrote to 
prevent his countrymen from making an alliance with Phalaris. He 
jived about 556 years before Christ, and died at Cataua, in the 85th 
year of his age. — His name at first was Tisias, but was changed to 
Stesichorus, in memory of his being the first who taught the chorus to 
dance to the lyre. 

Y 2 



324 

this Pythian abode, he has amassed in it the most costly 
presents, and for that purpose has not rejected the sculp- 
tor's art, which has conveyed to it colossal figures of men, 
and Gods, and horses, and bulls, besides other animals ; 
neither Glaucus coming with a bowl,* nor Polygnotusi* 
with a picture of Troy in flames, has been turned away. But 
though Apollo did not suppose the gold of Lydia would 
add any ornament to his temple, yet he permitted its being 
brought there, out of regard to the Greeks, who might, by 
seeing the wealth of the barbarians, be disposed more to 
make it an object of their plunder, than that of their own 
country by civil dissensions. In adorning his temple, Apol- 
lo has displayed a taste truly Grecian, and becoming his 
own wisdom. The reason, I think, which he assigns for 
delivering his answers in verse, is to give them more beau- 
ty and effect, otherwise he would simply utter them in the 
following short sentences, as, Do this, or Do not this. 
Go, or Go not, Make such alliance, or Do not make it. 
Expressions like these are short, and as you are wont to 
say, naked and unadorned ; but Apollo adopts the style of 
poetry, to make his responses more gracious and agreeable 
to all who come to consult his oracle. He wishes to be 
supposed ignorant of nothing, not even of the number of 
the grains of sand on the sea shore, J nor of measuring the 
ocean. And is this the knowledge which you are pleased 
to consider in the number of magical delusions, and to 
ascribe to the love of the marvellous ? merely because 



* An artist of Chios. 

t A celebrated painter of Thasos, about 422 years before the Chris- 
tian aera. 

$ This alludes to the answer given to the Lydians by the oracle at 
Delphi.— 

I count the sand, I measure out the sea : 

The silent, and the dumb, are heard by me, &c. 

Heroditus, Cleo. 47. 






325 

Apollo pronounced it with splendour, and elevation ot 
mind. Let not what I say offend thee, Thespesion ; the 
old women who tell fortunes by means of a sieve, go to 
the shepherds and herdsmen to cure their cattle when 
sick, by their skill in prophesying, as they call it : and for 
this they wish *o be thought wise, and even wiser than the 
true prophets. When, therefore, I compare your wisdom 
with that of the Indians, I think you exactly like these old 
women ; and the Indians as men divine, dressed, and 

adorned like the Pythian prophetess. But you — 

however, I will say no more. Modesty in speech is prized 
by me, as it is by the Indians, I wish to preserve it as the 
guide and companion of my lips. Whatever 1 can ac- 
quire by approbation and praise, I do ; whatever I cannot 
I never make the subject of invective. You have read in 
Homer how the land of Cyclopia* maintains a fierce and 
lawless race of menf without cultivation ; with which ac- 
count you are pleased ; and if any Edonians,J or Lydians, 
keep the feasts of Bacchus, you have no doubt of the 
earth supplying them with fountains of wine and milk suf- 
ficient for their use. Nevertheless, you refuse to those who 
are enthusiastically fond of wisdom, the gifts, I say, which 
the earth yields of itself. Tripods of themselves attended 
at the feasts of the Gods, yet Mars, incensed and ignorant 
as he was, never blamed Vulcan for making them, for no 
charge of such a nature would have been listened to by the 
Gods as this, " You are wrong, Vulcan, in giving such 
ornaments to the feasts of the Gods, and in manifesting 



* Sicily. 

t They, trusting to the Gods, plant not, or plough, 
But earth unsow'd, untill'd, brings forth for them 
All fruits j wheat, barley, and the vinous grape, &c. 

Cowper, Od. 9, 105. 

% Non ego sanius 

Bacchabor Edonis. Hon. 1. ii. o. 7. 



326 

your wonderful power." No accusation was brought against 
him for making hand-maidens of gold, nor for corrupting 
the metals by giving animation to gold. Ornament is the 
object of all arts, to effect which they are invented. It is 
even for the sake of ornament that men go without shoes, 
and carry a cloak and wallet. The going naked seems to 
present a condition the humblest and meanest, yet is stu- 
died for the sake of ornament, from which it only deviates 
by adopting a different kind of exterior. By the same 
rule let us judge of the sun, and of the manner in which 
he is worshipped, together with the ancient rites and cere- 
monies of the Indians. The terrestrial Gods take delight 
in caves, and the sacrifices performed in them. The air is 
the vehicle of the sun, and it is necessary that they who 
wish to honour him with becoming respect, should be 
raised above the earth, and elevated to the same heighth 
with the God himself. This exaltation is what is wished 
for by all, but can only be effected by the Indians. 



CHAP. XII. 

DAM IS recovered new life when he heard all that Apol- 
lonius said. The Egyptians were so much affected by his 
discourse, that Thespesion, whose complexion was of a 
dark and swarthy hue, appeared plainly to blush ; but all 
were astonished at the firmness and eloquence with which 
he had spoken. Daniis says, that the youngest of the 
Ethiopians, whose name was Nilus, leaped with joy, and 
running up to Apollonius, held out his hand, and request- 
ed him to give an account of all that passed in India. To 
whom Apollonius said, I can refuse nothing to those who 
are of a docile disposition, and love science ; but as for 
such men as Thespesion and others, who consider every 
thing Indian insignificant, and of no value, I am unwilling 
they should learn from me all I know of them and their 



327 

knowledge. To this Thespesion said, Suppose, Apollo- 
nius, you were a merchant, or captain of some vessel, and 
were to bring a cargo of goods from India, would you 
wish to have them disposed of without their being either 
seen, examined, or tried ? On the contrary, replied Apol- 
lonius, I should wish to have them examined by as many as 
pleased : at the same time I must say, that if a person came 
down to the beach just as the vessel arrived, and before 
the goods were landed, was to run down the cargo, and 
abuse me as coming from a country that had nothing good 
in it, and besides, was to attack this kind of navigation as 
useless and unproductive, and even try to bring over others 
to his opinion, can you imagine I would cast anchor in the 
harbour, or fasten my ship to land ; or is it not rather 
your opinion that I should hoist sail, put to sea, and commit 
my fortune more willingly to the mercy of the waves, than 
to that of such uncandid, inhospitable men. However, said 
Nilus, on this occasion, I here lay hold of the cable, and 
request you may share your cargo with me : Nay, I will 
insist on going aboard in quality of a passenger who knows 
and acknowledges the excellency of what you have brought 
home. 



CHAP. XIII. 

HERE Thespesion, with adesign of putting an end to the 
conversation, said, I am glad, Apollonius, you resented what 
I said, as I hope you will pardon us for a like warmth of 
temper we felt at the attack made on our wisdom previous to 
your having any knowledge of it. This surprised Apollonius 
a little, who had not been apprized of the machinations of 
Euphrates and Thrasybulus, but as he was wont, he soon 
comprehended its meaning; and said, nothing like this 
could have happened with the Indians, who, from their 
knowledge of futurity, would never have listened to the 



328 

suggestions of Euphrates. As to myself, I have no cause 
of difference with him ; I own, I once endeavoured to 
withdraw him from his love of riches, and the passion he 
has for turning everything to gain ; but he considered my 
advice unseasonable, and such as he could not follow. 
Nay, he took it as carrying a tacit reproach, for which 
he has never ceased plotting against me. But since you 
have deemed him a man of reputation, notwithstanding 
his misrepresentation of my character, take care, I pray 
you, that he has not treated yourselves in the same man- 
ner. For, in my opinion, he who is the object of calumny, 
incurs no inconsiderable share of danger, because he is 
hated, though innocent ; and they who listen to calumnia- 
tors, hazard also something, inasmuch as they make it ap- 
pear that they love lies, and estimate them as they do 
truth ; and shew themselves credulous, and inconstant, a 
fault which in youth is unbecoming. Besides, they must 
appear to us subject to envy, which alone moves them to 
listen to every false accusation. And to this may be added, 
that such people are more exposed to calumnies them- 
selves, who give credit to everything they hear to the dis- 
advantage of others : for know, the minds of men are ever 
more prone to commit whatever does not exceed the 
bounds of being believed. But God forbid such men 
should obtain sovereign power, and have dominion over 
the people, for a republic would become a tyranny in 
their hands ; nor should they be placed at the head of the 
law, for no cause would have a fair hearing with them; 
nor at the head of naval affairs, for they would create a 
mutiny in the fleet ; nor at the head of the army, for the 
enemy would have the advantage of them ; nor should 
such men even philosophize, for no right opinion of things 
will be ever formed by them. But Euphrates has done you 
wrong in bereaving you of your wisdom, for how can they 
whom he has deluded with his lies, lay a claim to that, 
from the maxims of which, they have departed at the sug- 



329 

gestions of one who made them believe the most incredible 
things ? Then Thespesion, with the design of appeasing 
Apollonius, and making light of what had passed, says, 
come Apollonius, we have talked enough of Euphrates, 
and things of such little moment, let us now endeavour to 
make you and him friends, for it is the part of wisdom to 
arbitrate between the wise. But, returned Apollonius, who 
will restore you to my favor ; for surely the man whose 
character is attacked by lies, has some reason to be angry. 
I grant it, said Thespesion : meanwhile, we shall philoso- 
phize together, and that will the sooner make us friends. 



CHAP. XIV. 

NILUS, who was very desirous to hear Apollonius, said, 
I think, Apollonius, you should give us an account of your 
journey to the Indies, and of what conversations you had 
with them, as I suppose all turned upon the most impor- 
tant subjects. And I wish very much, said Thespesion, 
to hear what you have to say of the wisdom of Phraotes, 
for, according to report, you have brought home the very 
image and impression of what you heard from him . On this, 
Apollonius beginning with what had passed at Babylon, 
related everything in order, to the end ; with which they 
were greatly delighted. Meanwhile, mid-day approached, 
that being the time employed by the Gymnosophists in 
their holy rites. 



CHAP. XV. 

WHILST Apollonius and his companions were taking a 
frugal meal, Nilus waited on them with bread and herbs, 
and a desert, of which he carried part himself, and the 
remainder was carried by others. As the young man ap- 



330 

proached, he addressed Apollonius with great respect, 
and said, The Sages send these presents of hospitality to 
you, and me — I say to me, as I mean, with your per- 
mission, to eat with you, and shall not come, as they say, 
without an invitation, as I now invite myself. Then, says 
Apollonius, I accept this tender of your person and cha- 
racter with great pleasure, as I am told your attachment to 
the wisdom of the Indians and Pythagoras is great. Sit 
down, says Apollonius, near me, and eat. I will, replies 
Nilus, but I fear your repast will not be enough for me. 
Am I to understand by this, returned Apollonius, that 
you have an enormous appetite ? You are, said Nilus, 
because if you provided a rich and sumptuous banquet for 
me, I should shortly require more. What other name 
can you give me, than that of an insatiable glutton. For 
God's sake, said Apollonius, eat as much as you please, 
you will give me matter of conversation, and I will be an- 
swerable for the rest. 



CHAP. XVI. 

AFTER their meal was over, Nilus said, Till this day 
I have served under the banners of these Gymnosophists ; 
I was enrolled among their light troops, and I am now 
going to put on heavy armour, and adorn myself with your 
shield. I am afraid, Egyptian, said Apollonius, that 
such a step would be considered as ill-judged by Thespe- 
sion, and the rest of the Gymnosophists ; who would not 
fail to say you had taken it without having duly prepared 
and examined yourself. I have the same fears too, said 
Nilus : but if he who makes a choice, commits a fault, 
perhaps he who does not, commits another : and if here- 
after the Gymnosophists were to make the choice I have 
done, would not they be more culpable than myself? For 
surely greater blame will attach to them, who from their 



331 

superior wisdom and advanced time of life, declined mak- 
ing that choice I have done ; and who, notwithstanding 
that superiority, neglected doing that which might have 
been so much to their advantage. You speak well, young 
man, said Apollonius ; but wise as you are, take care not 
to subject yourself to their censure. I own you have rea- 
sons for abandoning the sect of the Gymnosophists, but 
methinks you press on with too ardent a zeal, and proceed 
more after the manner of a reformer, than their disciple. 
Then the Egyptian, contrary to what Apollonius expected, 
thus answered, in all things wherein obedience was incul- 
cated by my seniors, I complied as a young man, and as 
long as I thought they possessed more wisdom than other 
men, I frequented their society ; but I will now tell you 
what gave rise to my present determination. My father 
formerly traded in the Red Sea, having the command of 
that ship which the Egyptians used to send out to India. 
In his voyages thither, he conversed with some Indians 
who lived on the sea coast, from whom he received the 
same accounts of their wise men you have. My father 
told me, they were the wisest of mortals, that the Ethio- 
pians were a colony from India, who trod almost, as it were, 
in the wise steps of their forefathers, and adhered strictly to 
domestic discipline. In consequence of this account I re- 
signed, though young, what hereditary patrimony I had, 
to those who desired it, and naked, joined the naked, to 
learn from them the wisdom of the Indians, or what at 
least approached the nearest to it. I found them wise, 
but not so wise as the Indians. When I asked them why 
they followed not the philosophy of the Indians, they had 
recourse to invectives such as you have heard this day. 
Young as you still see me, they enrolled me in their 
society, apprehending I might have followed my father's 
example and gone to sea, which I swear to you by the 
Gods, I would have done, and made my way to the Hill 
of the Sages, had not some God sent you hither as my 



332 

guide and assistant, to give me an intellectual relish of their 
knowledge, without either putting me to the trouble of tra- 
versing the Red Sea, or conversing with the dwellers on the 
sea coast. It is not therefore at this day I have made 
choice of my kind of life ; it was adopted long ago, but 
till now I never thought I had obtained its object. Is it 
wrong for a man to return to the right way, after having 
wandered from it ? Suppose I were to bring these Gym- 
nosophists to adopt my choice, what great act of temerity 
should I be guilty of ? Youth is not to be prohibited from 
doing it, a period of life more fitted to learn, than one more 
advanced in years. He who counsels another to embrace 
a system which he has chosen himself, avoids at least the 
reproach of giving advice to others which he does not 
follow himself; and whoever enjoys alone the good things 
which fortune has bestowed, does them an injury, inas- 
much as he takes from them the power they possess of giv- 
ing pleasure to others. 



CHAP. XVII. 

WHILST Nilus was talking like a young man, Apollo- 
nius said, as yet you have never alluded to what reward I 
am to receive for the communication of my wisdom, of which 
you are so desirous to partake. That shall not be forgot- 
ten, said Nilus, you may ask what you please. I ask, in 
the first place, said Apollonius, that whatever choice you 
make, should be made for yourself alone ; and next, that 
you should not trouble the Gymnosophists, by giving them 
councils which will not serve them. I agree to what you 
say, said Nilus, and to the stipulated reward. These a*e 
the conversations they held together. Afterwards Nilus ask- 
ed Apollonius how long he meant to stay with the Gymno- 
sophists, and he answered, as long as I shall judge their 
wisdom deserving of it, when once an opportunity is given 



333 

for conversing with them. He then said, he would go to 
Catadupa,* to see the sources of the Nile, thinking it 
would be not only delightful to examine them, but to hear 
the noise they make. After discoursing in this manner, 
and calling to mind all that happened in India, they lav 
down on the grass and went to sleep. 



CHAP. XVIII. 

THE next morning, as soon as it was day-light, and their 
accustomed acts of devotion performed, they followed 
Nilus, who conducted them to Thespesion, where, after 
mutual salutations, they sat down in a grove, and entered 
into conversation. Apollonius thus began it, The dis- 
course of yesterday, says he, proves clearly of what con- 
sequence it is not to hide our knowledge. The Indians 
gave me all the information I required, on the subject of 
their philosophy ; and even now I do not forget my in- 
structors, whose wisdom I am disseminating through the 
world. I shall be likewise of some use to you, if you 
make me acquainted with all you know. If you do, I 
shall never cease noising it abroad ; I shall communicate 
it to the Indians by letter. When the Gymnosophists 
heard this, they said, propose what questions you please, 
for all knowledge proceeds from interrogation. 



CHAP. XIX. 

THEN, says Appollonius, I will first ask why you have 
given to the people of this country representations of the 
Gods so absurd, and ridiculous, with only the exception 



* See note, chap. 23. 



334 

of a few ? But why do I say few ? Because there are 
but very few indeed conceived in wisdom, and formed in 
any degree suitable to the divine nature. Of the worship 
which you pay to the remainder, were we to form an 
opinion, we might suppose that not Gods, but irrational, 
and unseemly animals were the objects of it. At hear- 
ing this, Thespesion with some indignation said, of what kind 
then are the statutes of the Gods with you ? They are, 
replied Apollonius, as beautiful, and as proper to repre- 
sent the Gods, as can be devised. I suppose, said Thes- 
pesion, you allude to the statues of the Olympian Jove, 
and Minerva, and the Gnidian Venus, and Argive Juno, 
and whatever others excel in beauty and grace? They 
are not the only ones to which I allude, but I say in 
general, that the art which shews itself in the rest, has pre- 
served a most becoming propriety in their formation ; as 
to what I have seen among you, I think you hold your 
Gods rather in a ludicrous, than a serious point of view. 
What, said Thespesion, are we to suppose the Phidiases 
and Praxitelises went up^to heaven, from whence they 
drew their art and their likenesses of the Gods ? or was it 
any thing else which gave them a knowledge of the art? 
Yes, said Apollonius, it was something else, and what was 
pregnant with wisdom. And what was that, replied Thes- 
pesion, for I think nothing can be alledged but imitation ? 
Imagination, said Apollonius, a much wiser mistress, than 
Imitation ; for the one only copies what it sees, the other 
represents to the life what it has not seen. Imitation 
often fails in its designs through fear ; Imagination never, 
which advances fearless and bold to the execution of 
whatever she undertakes. He who wishes to form in his 
mind the image of Jupiter, should see him with the same 
enraptured fancy Phidias did, sitting in the heavens, en- 
compassed with the hours and stars. And he who would 
represent Pallas, should have in his mind precise and 
accurate ideas of war, and armies, and councils, and pru- 



335 

cicnce ; and be able to judge what her appearance \va9 at 
the timejshe started in full and complete armour, from the 
brain of Jupiter. If you place a hawk, or an owl, or a 
wolf, or a dog, in your temples, to represent Mercury, 
Minerva, or Apollo, the beasts and birds may derive 
dignity from such representations, but the Gods will lose 
theirs. I think, said Thespesion, you slight our mode of 
worship, before you have given it a fair examination. For 
surely what we are speaking of is wise, if any thing 
Egyptian is so ; the Egyptians dare not venture to give 
any forms to the Deities, they only give them in symbols, 
which have an occult meaning that renders them more 
venerable. Apollonius smiling at this, said, O, ye Sages, 
Great indeed is the advantage you have derived from the 
wisdom of Egyptians and Ethiopians, if you find any 
thing worthy of your worship in a dog, an ibis, or a goat : 
or if you think such creatures fit to represent your Gods; 
and yet this is what I now hear from the wise Thespesion. 
But let me ask what degree of veneration or terror can be 
excited by such objects ? I think it is more than probable 
that the perjurer, the blasphenier, and the profane, would 
despise more than fear such representations of celestial 
beings. But if what the mind discovers couched under 
such symbolical figures, is entitled to greater veneration, 
surely the condition of the Gods in Egypt, would be more 
highly respected if no statues whatever were erected to 
them, and if theology was treated in a different manner, 
with a little more wisdom and mystery. Men might build 
temples in honour of the Gods, and order the necessary 
altars to be erected, together with the sacrifices proper 
to each ; it is their business to prescribe the time of their 
duration, and the peculiar rites, and even words to be 
used on the occasion, which might be all done without 
the introduction of any image, but afterwards it is their 
duty to leave to the worshippers themselves on entering 
the temple, to give whatever likenesses they please to th<; 



'236 

Gods. The mind forms to itself a something which it 
delineates better than what any art can do ; but in the 
present instance you have taken from the Gods the very 
power of appearing beautiful either to the eye or the 
understanding. To this Thespesion said, there was an old 
Athenian of the name of Socrates, who was as great a 
fool as ourselves, who thought a dog, a goose, and even 
a Platanus, were Gods, and swore by them.* He was 
no fool, said Apollonius, but a divine, and truly wise man; 
he swore by these things, not as being Gods, but lest he 
should swear by the Gods. 



CHAP. XX. 

AFTER this, Thespesion, like one who wished to change 
the conversation, questioned Apollonius about the whip- 
ping of the Lacedemonians, and asked whether they were 
now publicly whipped ? They are, said Apollonius, and 
with great severity, though men of an ingenuous and free 
disposition. And how, said Thespesion, are their slaves 
treated who offend ? They are no longer put to death as 
the laws of Lycurgus permitted to be done ; but still the 
same stripes await them. And what do the Greeks think 
of this, said Thespesion ? They run, said Apollonius, as 
it were to the feasts f of Hyacinthus, or the Gymuopoedia, J 
to see it, viewing all with great composure and satisfac- 



* Some say it was out of reverence to the Divinity, that he used to 
swear by a cock, a dog, and a plane tree (under which they used to sit) 
though it were interpreted Atheism. Stanley's Life of Socrates. Shal- 
low swears by cock and pye. Sbakespear, Hen. IV. 2d part. Plane 
trees were consecrated to the Genii. 

t Hyacinthia — an annual solemnity at Amyclce in Laconia, in memory 
of the beautiful youth Hyacinthus, with games in honour of Apollo. 

$ Gymnopcedia — a solemn dance performed by Spartan boys. 



337 

tion. But are not the good Greeks, returned Thespesion, 
ashamed to see those who formerly had dominion over 
them, whipped in public ? or rather do they not blush at 
the recollection of being subject to the rule of men who 
are publicly scourged with rods ? And why has not this 
abuse been corrected by you, who, I am informed, paid 
particular attention to the affairs of Lacedemon ? Where- 
ever I thought my advice could avail, I gave it, said Apol- 
lonius, and it was immediately complied with. The Lace- 
demonians are the freest people of Greece, and obey only 
those who give them good councils. But the custom of 
whipping is still retained in honour of the Scythian Diana,* 
and in obedience, as is said, to the commands of the 
oracles, for, as I think, it is madness to make laws in 
opposition to those of the Gods. Then it seems to me, 
said Thespesion, that you make the Gods of the Greeks 
of but little account, if they still think whipping necessary 
for free men, who are so attached to liberty. It was not 
the Gods, said Apollonius, that ordered the scourging with 
rods, but they wished to have their altars sprinkled with 
human blood on account of its being held in honour by 
the Scythians. The Lacedemonians have ingeniously ex- 
plained a sacrifice which they could not evade, and have 
given a lesson of patience, by means of which they can 
escape death, and appease the Goddess with their blood. 
Why then, said Thespesion, dont they sacrifice strangers 



* The Tanri, a people of European Sarmatia who inhabited Taurica 
Chersonesus, sacrificed all strangers to Diana. The statue of this 
Goddess, which they believed to have fallen down from heaven, was 
carried away to Sparta by Iphigenia and Orestes. In a dispute which 
took place among some people who were sacrificing at her altar many 
lives were lost ; in consequence of which an oracle was given, signi- 
fying that this altar ought to be spriukled with human blood. Lycur- 
gus, however, changed the custom of sacrificing a man by lot, to the 
scourging of young men with whips^as by this means the altar is 
equally imbrued with blood. 

Z 



338 

to Diana, as was formerly customary with the Scythians. 
Because, said Apollonius, the Greeks were never eager to 
imitate the manners of the barbarians. However, said 
Thespesion, it appears to me that there would be less 
inhumanity in sacrificing one or two strangers, than in 
putting the law of banishment in force against all. Let 
us not blame Lycurgus, said Apollonius, nay, rather let 
us enter into the spirit of the legislator, and know, that in 
refusing strangers permission to remain in Sparta, it was 
not his intention to preclude all intercourse with them, 
but only to preserve their manners pure and free from 
foreign mixture. But, replied Thespesion, I should believe 
the Spartans to be such as they wish to appear, had they 
known how to live with strangers, and retain the manners 
of their country in their purity. For Spartans should 
have appeared, like themselves, not only in the pre- 
sence of strangers, but in their absence, by the main- 
tenance of the same virtues. Yet though they banished 
strangers, they corrupted their manners, and copied the 
actions of the people to whom of all others they were 
the greatest enemies. To councils savouring too much of 
others, they owed the establishment of a marine and taxes ; 
and what was at first considered by them as good ground 
of just \var against the Athenians, was adopted afterwards 
on a change of sentiment; and notwithstanding their 
superiority to the Athenians in military glory, they were 
always inferior to them in every thing they borrowed from 
them. Besides, when they introduced a Goddess from 
Tauri, and the Scythians, did they not adopt a custom of 
strangers? and supposing it done in obedience to the 
oracle, why was it necessary to introduce the custom of 
whipping, and devise a patience in suffering, only fit for 
slaves ? According to my opinion, it would have been 
worthier the character of Lacedemonians, and better 
adapted to strengthen their minds against the fear of death, 
had they made a sacrifice of such Spartan youths as volun- 



339 

tarily offered themselves at the altar. A sacrifice of this 
kind would have added much to the glory of Spartan 
courage, and averted Greece from taking up arms against 
her. Had the Lacedemonians thought it necessary to 
save their young men for war, the observance of the law 
among the Scythians relative to the men of sixty years of 
age, would have been more worthy their observance, than 
that of Scythians, supposing they sought death from mo- 
tives of sincerity and not of ostentation. What I have 
said, is not against the Lacedemonians, it is rather against 
you, Apollonius. For were we maliciously to search into 
all institutions whose origin cannot be ascertained, and to 
blame the Gods as if giving them their approbation, we should 
run into many absurd opinions by such a train of reason- 
ing. Suppose, for instance, we were to turn our attention 
to the Eleusinian Mysteries, and ask why such, and such 
ceremonies were established ; or suppose we were to con- 
sider the religion of the Samothracians, or the feasts of 
Bacchus, or the Periphallia, or the figures of Mercury, 
and inquire concerning each, why this is done, and that 
not, we should scarcely be able, I think, to withhold our 
disapprobation of them. Let us turn then to other topics 
more agreeable to you, to the doctrine of Pythagoras, 
which we observe and reckon our own ; and which holds 
it honourable to keep silence, if not in all things, at least 
in some. To this Apollonius answered, if, O Thespesion, 
it pleased you to pursue this argument, we could shew you 
many Lacedemonian Institutions wherein that people 
have distinguished themselves above all the other Greeks. 
But since you think such a subject is impious and unfit 
to make a part of our conversation, let us pass to another 
which I think is of importance, and that is justice. 



z 2 



340 



CHAP. XXI. 

LET us then, said Thespesion, make justice the subject 
of our discourse, as being one suited both to those who are 
philosophers, and to those who are not. However, to 
guard against the confusion arising from the intermixing 
of any Indian opinions in our conversation, and to forbear 
quitting our argument, till we come to some conclusion, 
tell us first I pray thee, what are the sentiments of the 
Indians concerning justice, as it is but natural to suppose 
you have well examined them : for if their opinions are 
right and conformable to truth, it is our duty to bow 
assent to them ; but on the contrary, if it appears that 
we reason more like philosophers than they do, I hope 
you will submit to us from a sense of reciprocal justice. 
Very well, said Apollonius, what you say, Thespesion, 
meets my full approbation. Listen, and I will tell you 
what made the subject of our disputations whilst among 
the Indians. I told them that my soul formerly inhabited 
another body, that I was then captain of a large vessel, 
and that I thought I had acted with great justice on a 
particular occasion, when a set of pirates promised me a 
reward, on condition of delivering up to them my vessel, by 
running her into a certain creek, where they were to be pre- 
pared for taking possession of her on account of the 
booty she had on board. All this I promised to do, to 
save my ship from being taken, and in the mean time 
slipped by them, and got beyond the promontory. What, 
returned Thespesion, did the Indians look on this as an 
act of justice? Far from it, replied Apollonius, they 
laughed, and said there was no justice in barely not acting 
unjustly. The Indians were right, said Thespesion, in 
withholding from you the title of just on that account. 
For prudence does not consist in the not planning foolish 
enterprises, nor courage in the not quitting your post in 



341 

the time of clanger, nor temperance in the not abstaining 
from adultery ; nor is a man's not appearing wicked, con- 
sidered as entitling him to praise. For every thing that is 
equally remote from meriting either reward or punish- 
ment, is equally remote from meriting the name of 
virtue. How then, Thespesion, said Apollonius, shall 
we be able to distinguish a truly just man, and for what 
conduct esteem him deserving of a crown ? I think, 
answered Thespesion, you discoursed on the subject of 
justice, rather with caution, and in a way too much accom- 
modated to circumstances, when you talked in the presence 
of a King* who governed a rich country of great extent, 
and who consulted you in a matter so nearly connected 
with justice, as that of ruling his subjects. To this Apol- 
lonius said, if it had been Phraotes with whom we con- 
versed on the subject of justice, you might indeed have 
blamed us, for not treating it with more gravity, but as 
from what I said yesterday, you must have known that the 
man we talked to was a drunkard, and an enemy to all 
philosophy, where would have been the necessity of 
troubling him, and vexing ourselves for the sake of one, 
who thought all happiness lay in spending his time after 
the manner of the ancient Sybarites ? But seeing an 
inquiry concerning justice, is more fitting us as philoso- 
phers, than kings and generals, let us come to the point, 
and examine who is the truly just man. You will not give 
the title of just to those who barely refrain from injustice, 
nor to me who thought myself entitled to it, when I com- 
manded my vessel, nor do you think us persons deserving 
of any honor. Certainly not, replied Thespesion, for 
there never was heard of a decree made by either Athe- 
nians or Lacedemonians, which conferred a crown on a 
man for not frequenting houses of ill fame; nor was it 



Whose name has not been given by Philostratus. 



342 

ever known that the rights of citizenship were granted to any 
one for not having been guilty of the sin of sacrilege. Who 
then, I say, will be numbered with the just, or what is a man 
to do to entitle him to that character ? for I never remem- 
ber a man to be crowned for his justice, nor a decree made 
in favor of a just man, running in words like these, " it 
is judged expedient to crown Caius, for having shewn 
himself just in such an action." And when I call to mind 
what befel Palamedes at Troy, and Socrates at Athens, 
I find that justice is not even sure of success in this world, 
and that persons the most just have suffered the most 
unjustly. Yet all perished under the pretext of having 
committed much injustice and wrong. But Justice her- 
self destroyed Aristides the son of Lysimachus ; notwith- 
standing the superiority of his character, he was exiled 
because he was just. Justice then it must be acknow- 
ledged is held in but a ridiculous point of view, for though 
she was appointed by Jupiter and the Fates, to prevent 
mens injuring each other, yet she is not able to defend 
herself. The case~of Aristides, is, I think, sufficient to 
distinguish the just from the unjust man. Tell me, is not 
this the Aristides, who (according to what you and the 
rest of the Greeks say) sailed to the isles to settle for them 
the rate of tribute, and who after having fixed it at a 
moderate valuation, returned in the same cloak in which 
he set out. The same, replied Apollonius, who formerly 
made the love of poverty flourish. Let us then, returned 
Thespesion, suppose two orators at Athens, who had under- 
taken to praise Aristides at his return from the allies, and 
that the one decreed him a crown, " hecause he had not 
returned richer by his embassy, and that, though the 
poorest man in Athens before he set out, had come back 
even poorer than what he was." And that the other pro- 
posed a law to this effect, " since Aristides has not im- 
posed a tribute above what the allies are able to bear, 
and has taken care they should have no cause of complaint, 



343 

and should live in good understanding with the people of 
Athens, it is, and let it be decreed, that the honors of a 
crown be granted to him on account of his justice." Do 
not you think that Aristides would set himself in opposition 
to the first decree, as being inadequate to his conduct, 
inasmuch as it offered him a reward for not having done 
any thing that was evil, and that he might probably approve 
the second for having truly expressed what was the real 
end and drift of his conduct, for he, looking only to the 
real interest of Athens and her allies, fixed the tribute at 
a moderate rate, which appeared evident after his death. 
For as soon as the Athenians increased their taxes above 
the valuation set by Aristides, their naval power, which 
rendered them so formidable, declined ; on the contrary, 
the power of the Lacedemonians rose at sea, when 
nothing survived of her rival's greatness. The consequence 
was, that all who were subject to the dominion of Athens, 
run into revolt, rebellion, and innovation. From what 
has been said, Apollonius, it appears, that the just man, in 
the right acceptation of the word, is not he who is not 
unjust, but he who acts justly, and does all he can 
to prevent others acting unjustly. From such justice 
many virtues will spring, and above all those of a juridical 
and legislatorial nature. For such a man gives his opinion 
with more equity, than he who swears on the dissected 
parts of a victim. The laws made by him will be like 
those of Solon and Lycurgus of old, for justice will 
predominate at the making of them. This, says Damis, 
is what passed on the subject of the just man, to which 
Ke added, Apollonius gave his full assent, it being ever his 
custom to yield to right reason. 

CHAP. XXII. 

AFTER philosophizing for some time on the immortality 
of the soul and nature, in a way not unlike what is to be 



344 

found in Plato's Temaeus, and after some long dissertations 
on the state of the laws at present in force in Greece, 
Apollonius concluded with saying, that he had undertaken 
that journey for the sake of not only seeing them, but the 
sources of the Nile, which not to have seen, might be 
pardonable in a man who had only visited Egypt, but to 
him who had penetrated into Ethiopia, the not seeing 
them and learning something of their nature, would be 
shameful indeed. Go in a good hour, said Thespesion, 
and pay whatever vows you please to its sources, for 
therein resides a divinity. You shall have, I think, Ti- 
masion for a guide, formerly of Naucratis,. but now of 
Memphis, one well acquainted with the sources of that 
river, and so pure as not to require any expiation. As to 
you, Nilus, we wish to have some private conversation 
with you, the meaning of which was no secret to Apol- 
lonius, who well knew that the Gymnosophists were not sa- 
tisfied with Nilus for his attachment to him. However, to 
give them an opportunity of speaking to him, he left them 
to prepare for his journey, which he intended to begin 
at sun-rise. Nilus soon after returned, but said nothing of 
what passed ; he only now and then laughed by himself. 
No one asked him why he did so, from the respect each 
man had for secrecy. They then supped, and after some 
conversation on matters of indifference, went to sleep. 

GHAP. XXIII. 

AT day-break they took their leave of the Gymnosophists 
after the customary salutations, and began their journey 
towards the mountains, with the Nile to their left, making 
observations on whatever was most remarkable. The 
Catadupse* are mountains of earth, like Tmolus in 



* Philostratus speaks here of the Catadupas, as the mountains 

through 



345 

Lydia. The Nile runs furiously through them, and with 
the soil, which it washes down from them, forms Egypt. 
The noise made by the waters rushing from these moun- 
tains, and tumbling into the bed of the Nile, is dreadful, 
and insupportable to the ear : and many who have ap- 
proached them nearer than they ought, have lost the use 
of that sense. 



CHAP. XXIV. 

WHILST Apollonius and his companions proceeded on 
their way, they approached certains hills abounding in 
trees,* whose leaves, bark, and gum, were turned to 
advantage by the Ethiopians. Near the road they saw 
lions, panthers, and several other kinds of wild beasts, 
of which not one offered them the least violence, but all 
retired as if afraid of men. Several other animals besides 
were seen by them, together with deer, and goats, and 
ostritches,f and wild asses. Boves-silvestres^ and Hirco- 
boves were in great abundance, of which the former par- 
took of the nature of the ox and the stag ; and the latter 
of the ox and the goat, from which the name is directly 
derived. They found some bones and carcasses half 



through which pour the cataracts. Others speak of them as the 
cataracts themselves, and some as the inhabitants of them. As to 
the Catadnpes, says Pocoke, those high cataracts that fall with such 
noise that they make the inhabitants deaf, I take all these accounts to 
be fabulous. 

* Olearius supposes he means the tree Myrobalanum. 

t irpeQos — or rather a-rfaBoKa.fxr.xoq — a word derived from cn-paSo?, which 
signifies a sparrow, or a bird m general, and xa^nXof, a camel, 
on account of the resemblance which the ostritch bears to that qua- 
druped. 

X The particular animals alluded to under the appellation of Boa.y^ t 
and BuTfayoi. I have not been able to ascertain. 



S46 

devoured. For lions,* it is said, when once gorged with 
fresh prey, mind but little what is left, from an assurance 
of always finding new spoils. 

CHAP. XXV. 

THE country they were now in, was inhabited by Ethio- 
pian Nomades, a people dwelling in waggons as in cities. 
Their nearest neighbours were they who hunt the elephant, 
whose flesh they cut in pieces and sell, hence their name 
of Elephantophagi. The Nasamones,f and the Andro- 
phagi,J the Pygmies,§ and Sciapodes>|| are all found in 
Ethiopia, dwelling on the coasts of the Ethiopian sea, 
which is never wont to be visited by mortals, except when 
driven to it by tempests, and against their wills. 

CHAP. XXVI. 

WHILST our travellers were talking of- what wild 
beasts they had seen, and of nature, which gives to each 



* The lion cannot justly be branded with cruelty, since he acts 
from necessity, and kills no more than he consumes. While the tiger, 
the wolf, &c. delight in slaughter, and seem rather to gratify their rage 
than their hunger. B. 

t Nasamones, an uncivilized people of Lybia, who generally lived 
upon plunder. Herodotus, Melp. c. 172. 

X The Androphagi of Ethiopia are mentioned by Pliny. 

$ Pygmies — Philostratus in his Icones, mentions that Hercules 
once fell asleep in the deserts of Africa, after he had conquered 
Antaeus, and that he was suddenly awakened by an attack, which had 
been made upon his body by an army of pygmies, who discharged 
their arrows with great fury upon his arms and legs. The hero was 
to delighted with their courage, that he wrapped a great number of 
them in the skin of the Nemean lion, and carried them to Eurystheus. 
This story might have suggested to the genius of Swift, the idea of his 
Lilliputians. 

|| Sciapodes. See b. iii. c. 45. 



347 

its proper nourishment, a noise reached their ears like that 
of thunder, not loud, but hollow, as if shut up within 
clouds. Whereupon Timasion cried out, we are near 
the cataract which is the last one to the descending, but 
the first to the ascending traveller.* From hence ad- 
vancing about ten stadia, their report is, that they saw the 
river falling from a mountain, not less than the Marsyas 
and Meander at their conflux. Here they offered up their 
prayers to the Nile, and proceeded without seeing any 
more wild beasts. As these animals are, by nature, timid and 
afraid of every noise, they prefer dwelling near still waters, 
and keep far from such as tumble down precipices, making 
loud uproar. Going on about fifteen stadia farther, they 
heard the sound of another cataract, which was both 
terrible and insupportable to the hearing, twice louder 
than the first, as it fell from much higher mountains. 
Damis says his ears, and those of one of his fellow-travellers, 
were so much affected by it, that he withdrew, and 
begged Apollonius might not go farther, who notwith- 
standing this remonstrance, advanced boldly with Tima- 
sion and Nilus to the third cataract,*]- of which, when he 
came back, he said, that the rocks which there hung over 
the Nile, were eight stadia high, that the bank over 
against the mountains, reared itself aloft, and looked like 
an eminence cut out of stone in a most wonderful manner, 
that the waters which burst from these mountains broke 
over this rock with great violence, and fell foaming and 



* This I suppose is the cataract of Syene, and which is described by- 
Bruce in the first vol. of his Travels — he says, " the current of the 
Nile, confined for a long course between the rocky mountains of 
Nubia, tries to expand itself with great violence." He concludes with 
saying that, " the noise it makes, fills the mind with confusion rather 
than with terror." 

t This cataract, Bruce says, was the most magnificent sight he ever 
beheld. 



348 

raging into the Nile.* He added, that accidents were more 
frequent here by reason of the greater quantity of water,*f* 
than at any of the other cataracts, that the noise occasioned 
by the rebounding echoes through the mountains, was the 
cause of its not being contemplated without great pain to the 
hearing, and that all farther proceeding to the first foun- 
tains, was not only difficult to be effected, but to be even 
imagined. They told many strange things of the demons 
there, not unlike what Pindar speaks so learnedly of in his 
hymns, of the demon which he makes preside over those 
springs, for the regulation of the Nile. 



CHAP. XXVII. 

AFTER visiting the cataracts, Apollonius and his com- 
panions stopped in a small village in Ethiopia, where, 
whilst they were at supper, they amused themselves with a 
variety of conversation both grave and gay. On a sudden 
was heard a confused uproar, as if from the' women of 
the village exhorting each other to seize and pursue. 
They called to the men for assistance, who immediately 
sallied forth, snatching up sticks and stones, with whatever 
other weapons they chanced to find, shouting all the 
time as if some violence was offered to their wives. All 
this hubbub arose from a satyrj having made his appear- 



* The noise it made was truly terrible — which stunned, and made 
him for a time, perfectly dizzy. Bruce. 

+ The river fell in one sheet of water, without any interval, above 
half an English mile in breadth. The noise it made was like the loudest 
thunder, and made the solid rock (at least as to sense) shake to its very 
foundation. Bruce. 

t Or rather, I should suppose, the confusion arose from an Orang- 
outang having made his appearance, whose dispositions perfectly cor- 
respond with those attributed to the whole race of satyrs by the 
ancient poets. Buffon says the Orang-Outang, or Satyrus Silvester, is 



349 

ance, who for ten months past had infested the village. 
This satyr was very fond of women, and, as was said, 
had been the death of two, whom he had seemed most 
attached to. The moment Apollonius perceived his 
friends were alarmed at this, he said, don't be terrified, 
it is only a satyr who is saucy to the women. By Jupiter, 
said Nilus, he is one whom our college of Gymnosophists 
have been unable to make desist from such improper con- 
duct. For my part, said Apollonius, there is but one 
remedy to be used in cases of such kind of insolence, and 
is what Midas had recourse to. He was himself of the 
race of the satyrs, as appeared plainly by his ears. A 
satyr once invited himself to his house, on the ground of 
consanguinity, and whilst he was his guest, libelled his 
ears in a copy of verses, which he set to music and played 
on his harp. Midas who was instructed, as I think, by 
his mother, learnt from her, that if a satyr was made 
drunk with wine and fell asleep, he recovered his senses 
and became quite a new creature. A fountain happening 
to be near his palace, he mixed it with wine, to which he 
sent the satyr, who drank till he was quite overcome with 
it. Now to shew you that this is not all mere fable, let 
us go to the governor of the village, and if the inhabitants 
have any wine, let us make the satyr drink, and I w ill be 
answerable for what happened in the case of the satyr of 
Midas. All were willing to try the experiment, and 
immediately four Egyptian amphoras of wine, were 
poured into the pond in which the cattle of the village 
were accustomed to drink. Apollonius invited the satyr to 
drink, and added, along with the invitation, some private 
menaces in case of refusal. The satyr did not appear, 
nevertheless the wine sunk as if it was drank. When the 



an ape, as tall and strong as a man, and equally ardent for women 
as for its own females, who knows how to bear arms, to attack 
bis enemies with stones, and to defend himself with clubs. 



350 

pond was emptied, Apollonius said, let us offer libations 
to the satyr, who is now fast asleep. After saying this, he 
carried the men of the village to the cave of the nymphs, 
which was not more than the distance of a plethron # from 
the hamlet, where after shewing them the satyr asleep, 
he ordered them to give him no ill usage, either by beating 
or abusing him ; for, says he, I will answer for his good 
behaviour for the time to come. This is the action of 
Apollonius, which by Jupiter, I consider as what gave 
greatest lustre to his travels, and which was in truth, their 
great feat. Any one who has perused the letter, which he 
wrote to a dissipated young man, wherein he tells him he 
had tamed a satyr in Ethiopia, must call to mind this 
story. Consequently no doubt can now remain of the 
existence of satyrs, and of their amorous inclinations. 
When I was myself in Lemnos I remember one of my 
contemporaries, whose mother, they said, was visited by a 
satyr formed according to all the traditional accounts we 
have of that race of beings. He wore a deer's skin on his 
shoulders, which exactly fitted him, the fore-feet of which, 
encircling his neck, were fastened on his breast. But of 
this I shall say no more, as I am sensible credit is due to 
experience, as well as to me.f 



CHAP. XXVIIL 

AFTER Apollonius returned from Ethiopia, the differ- 
ence between him and Euphrates widened by daily dis- 
putes. Euphrates, however he resigned to Menippus and 

* A pletbron about 100 feet. 
. t Veila, says Du Pin, le sommaire de la relation du voyage d'Apol- 
lone en Ethiopie, corame il est rapport^ par Philostrate. Je laissa a 
jnger aux personnes de bon sens, si ce n'est pas plutot un roman qu' 
nne histoire. 



351 

Nilus, and said little against him, whilst he shewed parti- 
cular attention to Nilus. 



CHAP. XXIX. 

AFTER Titus had taken Jerusalem, and filled all places 
with the dead, the nations round about offered him 
crowns, of which he did not think himself deserving. 
Saying, that it was not he who performed such mighty 
deeds, and that he only lent his arm to God in the just 
exercise of his vengeance. This answer was approved 
by Apollonius as being a proof of the wisdom of Titus, 
and of his knowledge in divine and human things, as also 
of his great moderation in declining to be crowned for 
having shed blood. He then wrote Titus a letter, which 
he wished to be carried by Damis, to the following 
effect, 

" Apollonius to Titus, Emperor of the Romans, 
health. 

" To you who refusest being crowned, on account of 
your success in war, and the destruction of your enemies, 
I give the crown of moderation, seeing you are so well 
acquainted with the reasons entitling you to that honour. 
Farewell 

Titus was well pleased with this letter, and said, In my 
own name, and that of my father, I hold myself your 
debtor, and will be mindful of you. I have taken Jeru- 
salem, but you have taken me. 



CHAP. XXX. 

AS soon as Titus was declared Emperor, and invested 
with the imperial dignity, he set out for Rome to become 



352 

colleague with his father. But first thinking of what con- 
sequence it might be to him, to have even a short confer- 
ence with Apollonius, he requested him to come to Argos 
for that purpose. On his arrival there, Titus embraced 
him, and said, my father has written to me of all be wished 
you to know. At present I have a letter, wherein he says 
he considers you as his benefactor, and one to whom we 
are indebted for what we are. I am only thirty years 
of age, and have arrived at the same honours my father 
did at sixty. I am called on to govern, before perhaps I 
have learnt to obey, and I have my fears of engaging to 
do what I am not equal to perform. Apollonius then 
stroking Titus's neck, which was like that of an athleta, 
said, who could subject to the yoke a bull with so fine a 
neck? He who reared me from a calf, replied Titus. 
In this answer Titus alluded to his father, under whose 
discipline he had been educated from a boy. When 
Apollonius heard this, I rejoice first at the readiness with 
which you obey your father, (to whom they who are not 
his children have pleasure in paying their obedience) and 
next at seeing you as a client waiting at his threshold. 
When a kingdom is directed by the vigor of youth, and 
wisdom of age, what lyre, or flute, can produce such sweet 
and harmonious music. The virtues of old age and youth 
will be united; and the consequence will be that the 
former will acquire vigor; and the latter decorum and 
order by the union. 



CHAP. XXXI. 

BUT, O Tyanean, said Titus, what advice have you to 
give concerning the best mode of governing an empire ? 
None to you, answered Apollonius, who are self-instruct- 
ed, by the manner in which you shew your obedience to 
your father, no doubt can be entertained of your becoming 



353 

like him. Yet I will tell you a saying of Archytas which 
is excellent and worthy of being remembered. Archytas* 
was a Tarentine, a man well versed in the doctrine of Pytha- 
goras ; in a treatise which he composed on the subject of 
Education, he says " Let a father be an example of virtue 
to his sons." A saying founded on the following considera- 
tion, that parents would be more zealous in the pursuit of 
virtue if they thought their sons would be like them. 
Added to this, I will give you my friend Demetrius as a 
companion to attend you, whenever you wish, and to ad- 
vise you in what is good to be done. Pray, said Titus, 
in what does his wisdom consist ? In liberty of speech, 
in speaking truth, in an intrepidity arising from a cynical 
spirit ! At hearing the word cynical Titus was troubled, 
to whom Apollonius replied, Homer thought Telema- 
chusy wanted two dogs on account of his youth, and 
therefore has introduced both as his companions into the 
council of the Ithacans, though without reason. But your 
dog shall be Demetrius, who will bark for you against 
others, and against yourself, if in any thiug you offend ; 
and this he will always do with wisdom, and never without 
reason. Give me then, says Tjtus, this dog companion, 



* Archytas, son of Hestiaeus of Tarentum, was a follower of the 
Pythagorean philosophy, and an able astronomer and geometrician. 
He redeemed his master Plato from the hands of the tyrant Dionysius, 
and for his virtues was seven times chosen by his fellow citizens 
governor of Tarentum. He perished in a shipwreck about 394 years 
before the Christian iEra. 

" Thee, whose great mind could scan earth's wide domains, 

" Trace the vast deep, the countless sands explore, 
" Archytas, thee one narrow bed contains, 
" One lonely spot on the Matinian shore. 

Hor. Ode 28, b. i. Boscawen. 
Archytas is said to have made a wooden pigeon that could fly. 
t Bright in his hand, a pond'rous jav'lin shin'd 
Two dogs, a faithful guard, attend behind. Pope. Od. ii. 
2 A 



354 

who shall have my full permission to bite me, whenever 
he finds me acting as I ought not. I have a letter* said 
Apollonius, ready to send to him to Rome, where I un- 
derstand he is now philosophizing. I am glad of it, said 
Titus, I wish some one would write to you in my favour, 
and recommend your accompanying me in my journey. 
To this Apollonius replied, you may depend on seeing 
me, whenever it shall be to the advantage of both. 



CHAP. XXXII. 

AS soon as Titus found himself alone with Apollonius, he 
said, O Tyanean, will you permit me to ask you some 
questions which are of great moment to me ? With plea- 
sure, returned Apollonius, ask, and let your confidence in 
doing so, be in proportion to the magnitude of what you 
ask. I would ask, said Titus, of things touching my life, 
and of the persons I should guard against, for I would not 
wish to shew fear where none exists, being already under 
some apprehensions. Herein, replied Apollonius, you 
will be but prudent and circumspect, and of all men I 
think it is your duty to be on your guard. Then looking 
up to the heavens, he swore by the sun, he would have 
addressed him on this subject, even if no question had 
been proposed: for the Gods commanded him to de- 
clare to Titus, that, during his father's life, he should 
guard against his greatest enemies, and after his death 
against his most intimate friends. Titus then asked 
of what kind of death he should die ? Of the same, 
said Apollonius Ulysses* did, who is said to have re- 
ceived his death from the sea. This prediction was in- 



* Unknown to pain, in age resign thy breath, 
When late stem Neptune points the shaft with death. 

Od. Pop*. 11. 134. 



355 

terpreted by Damis, who said Titus should beware of 
the sting of the fish Trygon,* with which it is affirmed 
Ulysses was wounded. From history we learn, that Titus, 
after reigning two years, died of eating a Lepus Marinus,f 
a fish from which, they say, issues a secret liquor which, of 
all poisons derived from land or sea, is the most deadly to 
man. A liquor which Nero was wont to mix up in vic- 
tuals for his greatest enemies, and which DomitianJ after- 
wards gave to his brother Titus, not from thinking there 
would be any difficulty in having him for a colleague in 
the empire, but from not wishing to have a colleague 
possessed of a mild and benevolent temper. This was the 
substance of what passed in private between Apollonius 
and Titus. In public they embraced each other, and as 
Titus was taking his leave of him, Apollonius said to him 
with a loud voice, vanquish your enemies in arms, and 
surpass your father in virtues- 



CHAP. XXXIII. 

THE letter which Apollonius wrote to Demetrius was to 
the following effect. 

" Apollonius the philosopher to the dog Demetrius, 

health. 
" I give you to the Emperor Titus, in order that you 



* Celsus says, the fish we call Pastmaca, the Greeks call Trygon — 
It has a poisonous sting in its tail, than which, says Pliny, nothing is' 
more detestable, and pernicious. Nicander is the only author, who 
says Ulysses was killed by this poison ; he mentions it in his Theriacs. 

t Lepus marinus, a venomous fish, whose poison was given by Do- 
initian to his brother. See Pliny. 

X I believe Philostratus is the only writer who ascribes the death of 
Titus to his brother Domitian. 

2 A 2 



356 

may instruct him in all royal virtues. Justify what I have 
said of you, be everything to him, but everything without 
anger. Farewel." 



CHAP. XXXIV. 

THE people of Tarsus of old bore no kindness to Apol- 
lonius, because neither his continual reproaches, nor the 
language in which he conveyed them, were adapted to 
their soft and effeminate [manners ; however, at this time 
they loved him, as much as if he had been their founder 
and the great support of their city. It happened once 
when Titus was sacrificing in public, that the whole city 
assembled presented a petition to him, which contained 
matters of the greatest moment. He said he would pre- 
sent it to his father, and perform the duties of an ambassador 
for them. When he said this, Apollonius came forward, 
and thus addressed him, suppose I could prove to you 
that some of the persons present are both enemies to you 
and your father, that they came to Jerusalem on an 
embassy for the purpose of exciting revolt, and that they 
privately gave assistance to those who were in arms 
against you ; if I could prove all this, what do you think 
they would deserve ? Nothing, replied Titus, but instant 
death. And are you not ashamed, said Apollonius, to 
shew more promptitude in punishing delinquents, than in 
rewarding those who never offended ; and in assuming to 
yourself authority sufficient to punish, whilst you defer 
that of recompensing, till you have seen and conferred 
with your father. Titus was not displeased with this mode 
of reasoning, and said, I grant them their petition, as I 
know my father will not be angry with me for having sub- 
mitted to truth and you. 



357 



CHAP. XXXV. 

HITHERTO have been enumerated the many countries 
visited by Apollonius for the purpose of giving instruction 
to them, or receiving it from them. The journeys which 
he afterwards made, were also numerous, but were neither 
so loug as the foregoing, nor to nations unvisited before. 
After his return from Ethiopia he passed some time in 
that part of Egypt which stretches along the sea coast 
called Lower Egypt. He visited also the Phenicians, 
Cilicians, Ionians, and Acheans ; and again passed some 
time with the Italians, but never omitting, wherever he 
went, to shew that he was always the same, and like him- 
self. Though the maxim of nosce teipsum is hard to be 
acquired, yet what I consider as the hardest of all ac- 
quisitions is that of a wise man remaining always the 
same. He will make little or no improvement in the cor- 
rupt minds of others, who has not so ordered his own, as 
to appear not subject to any change. On this subject I 
have written some discourses (to be found in another 
place) whose object is to teach those, who will take the 
trouble of reading them, that he who is really entitled to 
the name of man, cannot change, or be reduced to slavery. 
However, not to detain you with a too minute account of 
all his philosophical discourses, nor on the other hand 
lightly measure over a history which I compile, not without 
trouble, for the instruction of those who are unacquainted 
with the man, I have thought it my duty to relate such of 
his actions as are most memorable and shining. Such 
actions should be regarded as like to the visits of physi- 
cians. 



358 



CHAP. XXXVI, 



THERE was at this time a young man who spent his 
time in teaching birds to sing and speak, and who literally 
lived with them for that purpose. He taught them to 
speak like men, and imitate the notes of a flute. Apol- 
lonius meeting him one day, said, pray young man what is 
your employment ? But he talked of nothing except night- 
ingales, and blackbirds, and what was most proper to im- 
prove the notes of herons, having all the while a wretched 
voice himself. Whereupon Apollonius said to him, I 
think you spoil the voices of birds, in the first place by 
not letting them use their own, which are far beyond all 
musical instruments, and in the next place by making them 
the pupils of your own ignorance, which you do by speak- 
ing the Greek tongue so ill to them. Besides, you waste 
your fortune to no purpose, for when I look to your ser- 
vants and equipage, I must rank you with the rich and 
luxurious, who are but sponges to be squeezed by the 
hands of sycophants, whose tongues are as sharp as so 
many swords against them. And then what will become 
of your study of ornithology ? For though you should 
bring all the nightingales in the world to sing in concert, 
you will not be able to banish those parasites which will 
stick to you, and never quit you ; you will be obliged to 
lavish your substance on them, and throw your gold to 
them as you would puddings to dogs. And notwith- 
standing you do all this, you will not keep them from bark- 
ing for more and more, till at last you become yourself 
destitute of food, and be reduced to beggary. You must 
undergo an illustrious conversion, with an entire change 
of manners, to save yourself from being unknown to your- 
self, deplumed of all you have, and of being made a sub- 
ject more to be lamented by the birds, than celebrated by 
them in their songs. The means for effecting this con- 



s$9 

version are not difficult. In every city is to be found an 
order of men of whom as yet you are ignorant, called 
magistri, or masters. By giving them a small part of 
your property, you will make yourself sure of the remain- 
der, and from them you will learn that kind of eloquence 
which is termed forensick : an art not difficult to be ac- 
quired. If I had been acquainted with you in your youth, 
I should have advised you to frequent the doors of the so- 
phists and philosophers ; and to fence round your house 
with every kind of knowledge. But as the time of making 
these intellectual acquirements is gone by, learn now, at 
least, an eloquence that will defend yourself ; and remem- 
ber, that had you acquired a more perfect kind of know- 
ledge, you would have resembled a soldier rendered formi- 
dable by his heavy armour ; even yet, should you learn the 
art of rhetoric, you will have the armour worn by the 
light troops, and with it will be able to drive away syco- 
phants as you would dogs. The young man fully sensible 
of what was said, gave up his passion for birds, and fre- 
quented the schools of the masters, by whom the powers of 
his understanding and language were improved and aug- 
mented. 



CHAP. XXXVII. 

THERE were two stories prevalent at Sardis, one was, 
that the Pactolus* of old supplied Craesus with his gold, 
and the other that the trees were older than the earth. 
The first Apollonius said was probably true, because it 
was known that the mountain Tmolus contained gold dust, 
which, when loosened by the rains, was carried down the 



* Strabo observes that the Pactolus had no golden sands in his 
age. 



360 

stream ; but that by long lapse of time it ceased, as is 
usual in such like cases. The other story of the trees be- 
ing older than the earth, he laughed at, for no man who 
had ever studied philosophy, could suppose the stars 
older than the sky ; it being even his opinion that nothing 
can exist before the subject exists by which it is sup- 
ported. 



CHAP. XXXVIII. 

WHILST the governor of Syria was stirring up sedition 
at Antioch and sowing dissension among the citizens, by 
means of which the city was disturbed and divided into 
factions, a violent shock of an earthquake was felt, which 
so terrified the inhabitants that they run into all the holes 
and corners they could find, as is customary in like prodi- 
gies, and poured out prayers for each others safety. On 
this occasion Apollonius happened to be present, who 
thus said, A God has manifested himself among you for a 
restoration of peace. Henceforth [ trust you will not for 
the time to come fall into similar dissensions, from a full 
sense of what has now happened. He then suggested 
what might be expected from internal divisions, which was 
a fate like to what had befallen the other cities of Asia. 



CHAP. XXXIX. 

THE following circumstance is thought worth noticing. 
A certain man was ofTering sacrifices to the earth, in hopes 
of finding a treasure, and whilst thus employed, scrupled 
not addressing Apollonius on the subject of his petition. 
Apollonius understanding what he wished, said, I see 
plainly how much your heart is fixed on riches. Say not 
so, replied the poor man, but rather say I am unhappy : 



361 

I have but a small fortune, and that scarcely enough to 
support my family. What, said Apollonius, I suppose you 
have a numerous family to maintain, and that it contributes 
but little towards its support : for as to yourself you do not 
appear of the number of the unwise. The man shedding 
some tears at this, said, I have four daughters, and it will 
be necessary to give each of them a portion : I have my- 
self only twenty thousand drachmas, which when divided 
amongst them, will be but little to each ; and I shall be 
ruined, as nothing will be left for me. Apollonius hearing 
this, had compassion on him, and said, The earth and I 
will take care of you, for I am assured you offer sacrifices 
to her. After this, without saying more, he walked into 
the suburbs of the city, like one who seemed as if he in- 
tended to buy fruit. Whilst there, he happened to see a 
piece of ground planted with olive-trees, whose height 
and beauty pleased him : and in it he discovered a little 
garden abounding with bees and flowers. He entered this 
garden like one who wished to examine it better, and after 
offering up his prayers to Pandora, returned back to the city. 
He then went in quest of the owner of the ground, whose 
fortune had been acquired by the most unjustifiable means, 
(in fact it was acquired by information given against the Phe- 
nicians, or Jews, by which their properties were confis- 
cated) and when found, he asked him for what he had 
bought the farm, and what he had laid out in improving it ? 
The owner told him he purchased it the year before for 
fifteen thousand drachmas, on which he had not as yet 
made any improvement. On hearing this, Apollonius 
persuaded him to sell it for twenty thousand drachmas, by 
which he would be a gainer of five thousand. The poor 
man who looked for the treasure, knew not the value of the 
present made him, he thought he had only got the worth 
of his money, nay, rather less, inasmuch as the twenty 
thousand drachmas, whilst they remained in his hands, were 
entirely in his own power ; but the farm he got in place of 



36$ 

them was liable to hail and rain, and such other inclemen- 
cies of weather as are fatal to the productions of the earth. 
But when he found a pitcher of three thousand darics* in 
it not far from the Apiary, and had received a considera- 
ble produce from his olives, though the year was not pro- 
ductive, he celebrated Apollonius in hymns, whilst suitors 
flocked from all quarters to woo his daughters, and pay 
their respects to the father. 



CHAP. XL. 

AMONG the memorabilia of Apollonius, is noticed what 
follows. There was a young man who fell in love with 
the statue of Venus, f which stood naked in Gnidus. He 
made her many presents, and promised many more if she 
would marry him. All this Apollonius considered as very 
absurd : yet the Gnidiaus made no objection to it, on the 
contrary they encouraged it, from thinking the Goddess 
would acquire greater celebrity by being beloved. This is 
what made Apollonius take the resolution of clearing the 
temple from such a folly. The Gnidians asked if he 
wished to make any reformation in their prayers and sacri- 
fices ? All Apollonius said to this, was, that he would im- 
prove their sight, but that the rites and ceremonies of the 



* Daric — a famous piece of gold coined by Darius, not the father of 
Xerxes, but one more ancient. It was dispersed over the East, and 
also Greece : so that the Persian Daric called Stater, was the gold 
coin best known in Athens. According to Dr. Bernard it weighed two 
grains more than one of onr guineas, but as it was remarkably beauti- 
ful, of the finest and purest gold, and contained little or no alloy, it 
may be reckoned worth about 25 shillings of our money. — It bore the 
image of Darius, and on the reverse, a chariot drawn by mules. 



t Miratur, ethaurit 
Pectore Pygmalion simulati corporis ignes. 



Ovid. 



36S 

temple he would leave as he found them. Then tuniing 
to the love-sick youth, he asked him if he believed in the 
existence of the Gods ? So much so, said he, as that I 
have fallen in love with them ; and then he began to talk 
of his marriage as a matter that might be brought about 
after the due performance of certain sacrifices. When 
Apollonius heard this, he said, Thou fool, it is the poets 
who have inspired you with this folly, who in their fables 
have talked of the loves of Anchises and Venus, and 
Peleus and Thetis. • But of mutual love, my opinion is 
this, that Gods love Gods, men love men, and beasts love 
beasts ; and that every thing loves its like, by which it 
produces what is of the same nature with itself. If a be- 
ing of one species unites with that of a different one, it 
cannot render either love or marriage permanent. If you 
had called to mind the story of Ixion, you would never 
have thought of falling in love with what is unlike your- 
self. He is whirled through the heavens like a wheel ; and 
you will be undone if you do not instantly quit this tem- 
ple : and will have no cause to complain of the injustice 
of the Gods. This remonstrance extinguished the flame 
with which the youth was on fire, who, instead of making 
a boast of his love, went away to offer sacrifice for his 
pardon. 



CHAP. XLI. 

AT this time the towns situate on the left side of the 
Hellespont were subject to earthquakes. Certain Egyp- 
tians and Chaldeans taking advantage of the alarm, went 
up and down through them, collecting what money they 
could, under pretence of offering to Neptune and Tellus, 
a sacrifice which would cost ten talents. Both towns and 
individuals, whilst under the impression of terror, contri- 
buted what they could from their public and private 



364 

Btock ; these cheats having declared no sacrifices could be 
offered till the money was lodged in the hands of their 
bankers. Apollonius resolving not to neglect the interest 
of the Hellespontines, went through their towns, and 
drove* out of them those wandering impostors, who were 
making gain of their misfortunes. Then inquiring into the 
cause of the anger of Tellus and Neptune, he offered the 
proper expiatory sacrifices to each, and by this means 
averted the danger which hung over them at a small ex^ 
pense, and the earth got some rest. 



CHAP. XLIL 

ABOUT this time the Emperor Domitian issued a decree, 
forbidding the further making of eunuchs,f and planting 
vines,J with a clause added to the latter prohibition, which 
commanded such as were planted to be cut down. Apol- 
lonius happening to come into Ionia, said, these orders of 
the Emperor do not affect me, for of all men living, I 
stand least in need of wine and the organs of generation : 
but our most admirable Domitian does not perceive, that 
though he spares men, he nevertheless castrates the earth. 
By what Apollonius said, the Ionians assumed courage 
sufficient to send ambassadors to the Emperor, with orders 
to do all they could to prevent the execution of a law 
tending to the great injury of the earth, by commanding 
them not to plant it with vines. 



* Philostratus does not tell us by what authority Apollonius did 
this. 

t Castrari mares vetuit. Suetonius. 

t Edixit ne quis in Italia novellaret, utque in provinicis vineta sue- 
ciderentur. Idem. 



365 



CHAP. XLIII. 

WHAT happened whilst Apollonius was at Tarsus, is 
mentioned to his honour. There was a mad dog that as- 
saulted a young man, and bit him, in consequence of 
which the youth imitated all the cries of a dog, he barked, 
he howled, &c. he walked on all fours, making use of his 
two hands in running. As soon as Apollonius heard of 
the accident, he went to see the young man, who had 
been now thirty days ill. As soon as he saw him, he or- 
dered the dog that bit him to be produced, but the peo- 
ple of whom he inquired about the dog, said they had ne- 
ver seen him, as the accident happened outside the walls 
of the town, at the time the young man was employed in 
the exercise of throwing the javelin. Apollonius next in- 
quired of his patient what sort of dog he was, who told 
him he knew nothing of him : then considering the case 
for some time, he said, The dog, Damis, is white and 
shaggy, of the shepherd's breed, and is like an Amphilo- 
chian dog. He is at this moment standing near a certain 
fountain which he named, wishing both to drink the water 
and fearing it. Go and bring him to the bank of the river, 
to w here the Palestra is :* to do this, you have only to say 
I want him. As was desired, Damis brought the dog, 
who, when he came, lay down at the feet of Apollonius, 
moaning like a supplicant at the altar. Apollonius made 
the dog more docile, by stroaking him with his hand ; he 
placed the youth near him, all the time holding fast the 
dog. That this grand arcanum might not pass unnoticed 
by the people, he declared in all their hearing, that the 
soul of Telephus had passed into the young man, and was 



* The place where all the exercises of the Pentathlon, &c. were 
performed. 



366 

now subject to like orders of the Fates. After saying this, 
he ordered the dog to lick the sore, in order to shew that 
he who was the author of the wound should be the author 
of its cure.* After this operation, the youth turned to his 
father, knew his mother, saluted his companions, and 
drank of the water of the Cydnus. Apollonius was not 
forgetful of the dog, whom he made pass over the river, 
after offering up his prayers to it. Having crossed it, he 
stopped on the opposite bank, and set up such a barking 
as mad dogs are seldom wont to do, he then hung down 
his ears, and wagged his tail like one cured. Water be- 
comes medicinal to dogs the moment they are able to en- 
dure it.f I have now related all Apollonius did in favour 
of temples and cities, for and against nations, for the dead 
and the sick, with the wise and the foolish ; and with the 
princesj who consulted him on the subject of virtue. 



. * As Telephus was cured by the same spear with which he was 
wounded. 

t On voit bien, says Du Pin, que tout cela est une production d« 
l'imagination de l'auteur, et non pas un rapport sincere d'un fait verita- 
ble. 



BOOK VII.— Contents. 

An account of certain Philosophers in times of danger — 
Apolloniw superior to them — Cited to Rome — Ar- 
rival there — Accused before Domitian — Thrown into 
prison — Audience given him by the Emperor — - 
Greater indulgence allowed him in consequence. 



CHAP. I. 

1 AM not ignorant that the conduct of philosophers 
under despotic governments, is the truest touchstone of 
their character, and I like to consider how much one 
man exceeds another in courage on such occasions, and 
which to ascertain is the chief object of the following 
reflections. During the reign of Domitian, Apollonius 
was assailed on every side with accusations and informa- 
tions ,• the causes whence and wherefore they originated, 
together with the pretexts under which they were con- 
cealed, shall be explained hereafter. But as it is ne- 
cessary to specify the language he used, and the character 
he personated, under which he escaped guiltless, and at 
the same time overcame the tyrant, instead of being over- 
come; so it is equally necessary to notice what I find 
most remarkable in what has been done by other phi- 
losophers against tyrants, and to compare all widi what 
Apollonius himself did, for it is by such comparison we 
shall come at the truth and a just appreciation of his 
character. 



368 



CHAP. II. 

ZENO* of Elea, who is considered as the inventor of 
logic, was seized in the very act of planning the destruction 
of the tyranny of Nearchusf the Mysian. When put to the 
rack, he, far from discovering his accomplices, named all the 
tyrant's most intimate friends as guilty, who were all put 
to death : in this way he liberated Mysia, by ingeniously 
contriving to supplant tyranny by its own weapons. 
PlatoJ declares he entered into the design of restoring 
liberty to the Syracusans, by acting as an accomplice 
with Dion, who was at the head of it. Phyton§ when 
forced to quit Rhegium, fled to Dionysius the tyrant of 
Sicily, by whom he was admitted to a greater share of 
his confidence than an exile ought, by which he became 
acquainted with the tyrant's secrets, and having learnt that 
he designed to make himself master of Rhegium, he gave 
information of it to the citizens by letters, and was dis- 
covered. When taken, the tyrant had him fastened 
alive to one of his machines, which he ordered to be ad- 
vanced to the walls, presuming that the Rhegians would 
not attack it with offensive weapons, out of regard to 
Phyton. The moment he understood it, he cried out, 
" Spare me not, for I am the signal of your liberty." 



* Zeno of Elea, or Velia, in Italy, the disciple and adopted son of 
Parmenides, and the supposed inventor of dialectic. He lived 466 
years before Christ. 
' t Nearchus was a Mysian, and tyrant of the Eleates. 

% See life of Plato in Diogenes Laertius. 

§ There is some disagreement between Philostratus and Diodorus, 
concerning Phyton — the latter says he was general of the people of 
Rhegium against Dionysius, the tyrant of Sicily, that he was taken by 
the enemy, and tortured; and his son thrown into the sea. — A. 387, 
before Christ. 






3(59 

Ileraclides and Python,* who put to death Cotys the 
Thracian, were young men of the academic school, both 
wise, and consequently free.f Who is ignorant of what 
was done by CalisthenesJ the Olynthian, who on the same 
day, both praised and censured the Macedonians, when 
at the summit of their greatness, and yet every one knows 
he was put to death the moment he appeared disagreeable 
to them. Let us not forget Diogenes of Sinope, and 
Crates of Thebes,§ the one immediately after the battle 
of Cheronea, waiting on Philip, rebuked him sharply 
on account of the Athenians, (of whom Heraclides said, 
he has destroyed by arms a people too vain of their 
military glory) and the other, when Alexander told him he 
would rebuild Thebes, said, he did not want a country, 
which a more powerful man might again destroy. Many 
other examples might be adduced in point, but as my 
object does not admit of prolixity, I shall omit them ; for 
otherwise 1 should be obliged to speak against actions 
already noticed, not from their want of merit or general 
approbation, but from their being inferior to what were 
performed by Apollonius, though superior to what have 
been done by others. 



CHAP. III. 

THE actions of Zeno of Elea, and of those who killed 
Cotys, are not to be compared with what Apollonius 



* Two brothers who put to death Cotys, in revenge for the death of 
their father, for which they were invested with the rights of citizenship 
by the Athenians. 

t Agreeable to the dogma of the Stoics, which says, " Solus sapiens 
liber." 

t See the life of Alexander. 

$ Crates was a disciple of Diogenes, before Christ 324. 

2 B 



370 

did. It is easy to enslave Thraciaus, Mysians, and Getae, 
but it is imprudent to make them free, because they do 
not love liberty, nor consider, as 1 think, servitude a 
disgrace. Plato shewed no great wisdom in determining 
to meliorate the public affairs of Sicily, in preference to 
those of Athens: because it appeared that money was 
his object, and that he who thought to deceive others, was 
deceived himself; but this I dare not say, from regard to 
those who do not like to hear it. What Phyton did at 
Rhegium against Dionysius, was done against him before 
his power was fully established in Sicily, and if he had 
not been pierced by the darts of its citizens, must have 
fallen by the hands of the tyrant. But in all this I find 
nothing extraordinary, for he only preferred dying, on 
account of giving liberty to others, to that of living in 
slavery himself. Calisthenes cannot escape the imputation 
of depravity, because, by praising and blaming the same 
persons, he either blamed those whom he thought deserved 
praise, or praised those whom he thought deserved blame. 
Hence it follows, that he who insults the good, will never 
escape being thought envious ; and in the same manner, 
he who praises and flatters the wicked, will be considered 
as participating in their crimes, because the praise which 
is lavished on them, only renders them the more wicked. 
Had Diogenes spoken his mind to Philip before the 
battle of Cheronea, he might have prevented* his making 
war on the Athenians; but having only done it after the 
action was over, he rebuked and did not correct. Crates 
merits blame from all men who love the public good, 
because he did not confirm Alexander in the design he 
conceived of rebuilding Thebes. But Apollonius, with- 



* Prevented Philip : prevented Buonaparte : a cynic speaking out 
of a tub to prevent Philip making war. " Such men fetch their pre- 
cepts from the cynic tub." 



371 

out having any apprehensions either for his own safety or 
that of his country, and without even the necessity of 
humbling himself to make insipid harangues, had to deal, 
not with Mysians or Getae. or with a man who was only 
master of an island or some small territory ; but with 
one whom both sea and land obeyed ; against him Apol- 
lonins took up arms for the good of his subjects, after 
having displayed the same courage he had done against 
Nero. 



CHAP. IV. 

WHOEVER pleases, I know, may consider all Apollonius 
did against Nero, as matter of mere ostentation, inasmuch 
as he did not march out in battle against him ; but at 
the same time it is well known he considerably weakened 
his power, by the encouragement he gave to Vindex in 
his revolt, and the reproaches he poured out against Ti- 
gellinus.* I know also, that his attacking Nero, let what 
will be said of it, required no great courage, as he 
w as one who only led the life of a player on the lyre or 
harp. But supposing is was so, what will they say of 
Domitian,f a man of a most robust constitution, an 
enemy to all the pleasures arising from vocal or instru- 
mental harmony, which tends to soften man's rugged 
nature,;}; a monster, whose luxury of delight was derived 
from the misfortunes of his fellow-creatures, and whatever 
gave them pain ; who said, that the distrust' of the people 



* See b. v. c. 10. B. iv. c. 40. 

t Domitian was of tall stature, of ruddy countenance, and of person 
comely and graceful. Suetonius. 

$ Under Domitian, it was our wretched lot to behold the tyrant, and 
to be seen by him ; while he kept a register of our sighs and groans : 
" cum suspiria nostra subscriberentur." Tacitus, 

2b2 



S72 

towards tyrants, and tyrants towards their people, was the 
phyJactery, or charm, that supported power, and to sum 
up all, that it was during the night an Emperor should 
cease from all work, except that of death and slaughter. 
Hence it came to pass that the senate was mutilated* 
of its best members ; and philosophy so panick- 
struck, that • somef of its professors fled in disguise to 
the farthest parts of Gaul, others to the deserts of 
Libya and Scythia, and some there were who embraced 
the doctrines most suitable to the fashionable vices 
of the age. At this time Apollonius was what Tire- 
sias says of himself in the (EdipusJ of Sophocles, " I 
am Apollo's subject and not thine," he always considered 
wisdom as his sovereign mistress, and defended liberty 
under Domitian. The words of Tiresias and Sophocles 
he applied to himself ; he never entertained any fears for 
his own life, but was deeply affected with what caused 
the misfortunes of others. This was the true cause of his 
turning against the tyrant all who were young in the senate, 
and all in whom he found either wisdom or council. He 
made journeys into the several provinces, he talked to 
their governors, said the power of tyrants was not immor- 
tal, and was easily subverted by its own fears. He set 
before their eyes the panathenea of Athens, at which the 
exploits of Harmodius and Aristogiton were celebrated ;^ 
and the deed proceeding from Phyle, which brought on 



* A:L>'jsTr.- r ta.&— mutilate, to deprive of some essential part. 

t When Domitian was Emperor, the philosophers were, by a decree 
of the senate, driven out of the city: aud banished Italy, at which time 
the philosopher Epictetus went from Rome to Nicopolis on account of 
that decree. Aclus Gellils. 

X (Edipus Tyrannus. 

§ For when Thrasybulus fled to Phyle, which is a very strong castle 
in Attica, (not a hundred stadia distant from Athens) he had no more 
with him than thirty of his countrymen. " Hoc initium fiiit salutis 
Atticorum, &c." C. Nepos. 



373 

the destruction of the thirty tyrants. He called to their 
remembrance the patriotic exploits of the Romans, who, 
when the power of the people prevailed, drove tyranny 
from their doors. 



CHAP. V. 

A CERTAIN tragedian came to Ephesus, to represent 
there the play of Ino.* The proconsul of Asia happened 
to be present during the representation, who, notwith- 
standing his youth, had considerable rank among the Viri 
Consu/ares; but whose character wanted firmness in 
matters which concerned the public. After the actor 
had recited some iambics, in which Euripides says, that 
tyrants of long established power, were sometimes over- 
set by very trifles, Apollonius, it is said, started up, and 
cried out, This poitron of a governor neither understands 
me nor Euripides. 



CHAP. VI. 

WHEN Apollonius was informed that Domitian had put 
to death three vestal virgins,^ who had violated their 



* A tragedy of Euripides — not existing at this day — but the passage 
alluded to here, is to be found among the valuable fragments preserved 
by Stobaeus, a Greek writer who flourished about the year 405 of the 
Christian JErn. I shall give the passage in the elegant translation o^ 
Grotius. 

Video tyrannos longa quos fovit dies, 

Ut saepe res exigua momento brevi 

Deturbet, alios rursus in Ccelum levet. 

Pennata resfortuna — tain raultos ego 

Vidi supinos spe procul volvi sua. 
t The lewdness of the virgins, denominated vestal, which had been 
overlooked by lus father and brother, he punished severely. Suetonius. 



374 

vow of virginity, sworu to - the Ilian Minerva,* and neg- 
lected the holy fire, as a rich atonement to the Roman 
Vesta, he said, I wish atonement was made to you, O Sun, 
for all the unjust murders committed throughout the 
world. These things he said, and these petitions he offered 
up, not in private as cowards are wont, but in public and 
before all people. 



CHAP. VII. 

DOMITIAN, after putting to death Sabinus,f one of 
his relations, married Julia, who was his widow and his 
own niece, she being one of his brother Titus's daughters : 
on account of this marriage, the people of Ephesus offered 
a public sacrifice. Apollonius happening to be present, 
exclaimed, O night of the Danaids, how singular hast 
thou been. J ■ 



CHAP VIII. 

ALL Apollonius had to do at Rome, was done in this 
manner. Nerva was often thought worthy to reign, and it 
appeared, that when he mounted the throne after the 
death of Domitian, he ruled with great moderation. The 



* The statue of Pallas stood in the temple of Vesta, where she is 
represented holding in her hand the Palladium, or the Minerva 
Iliensis. 

t He also put to death Flavius Sabinus, one of his cousins, because, 
upon his being chosen at the consular election into that office, the 
public crier had, by a blunder, declared him to the people, not consul, 
but Emperor. Suetonius. 

} In which the fifty daughters of Danaus, put to death their fifty 
husbands, their cousins, one excepted, Hypermnestra, who saved her 
husband Lynceus. 



/ 



S75 



*ame opinion was entertained of Orfitus* and Rufus.f 
These men, after being accused of traiterous designs 
against Domitian, were banished by him to the islands, 
and NervaJ was ordered not to leave Tarentum. With 
them Apollonius was closely connected all the time Titus 
reigned with his father, and after his father's death, when 
he reigned alone. With them Apollonius publickly cor- 
responded on the subject of morality ; them he attached 
to the Emperors interests, on account of their good 
characters ; but he alienated them from Domitian, on 
account of his tyranny and pride, and encouraged them 
to stand forth in defence of the common liberty. Whilst 
Domitian lived, he thought it unsafe to carry on any 
epistolary correspondence whatever, as it was a fact, that 
many of the most powerful citizens were betrayed by 
their slaves, their friends, and their wives : and in short, 
that there was not a house to be found possessed of a 
secret. Apollonius, who was fully apprized of this, chose 



* Salvidiemis Orfitus, banished by Domitian, quasi molitor rcrum 
novarum, as one who designed an insurrection against him. 

Suetonius. 
He was soon after put to death in the place of his exile. 

t Rufus is supposed by Olearius to be Lucius Minucius Rufus, who 
was consul with Domitian, in the year of Christ, 88. 

t If Nerva was banished, he returned home the same or the follow- 
ing year, for, Dion Cassius says, he was at Rome when Domitian was 
murdered ; nay, that writer takes no notice of the banishment of 
Nerva, which makes us suspect the truth of what Philostratus writes, 
who is often guilty of very considerable mistakes. Universal History. 

Nerva would have been put to death from his horoscope, had not 
an astrologer, who was his friend, diverted the Emperor from it, by 
saying that he had not long to live in the course of nature. 

These three senators, Orfitus, Rufus, and Nerva, says Crevier, 
were men of great merit, and thought worthy of the empire, which 
Nerva afterwards obtained. But if we credit Philostratus, adds the 
same writer, Domitian's distrust of them was not gronndless, for 
they all held a correspondence with Apollonius, who never ceased 
to exhort them to deliver the world from a tyrant. 



376 

out of his companions such as he thought most to be 
depended on for their prudence, and of them so chosen, 
he used to take apart, sometimes one and sometimes an- 
other, and would say to them, I will entrust you with a 
great secret. " You must go to Rome, and find such a 
one ; and you must talk to him ; and to persuade him to 
what you wish, you must be every thing I am." How- 
ever, as soon as he heard that Orfitus and Rums were 
banished for the spirit they shewed against the tyrant, and 
had only failed from want of due precaution, he took up 
his station at the grove of Smyrna, on the banks of the 
Meles,* and discoursed of fate and necessity. 

CHAP. IX. 

APOLLONIUS, knowing that Nerva was to succeed 
Domitian, spoke of it as a matter of public notoriety, and 
shewed that tyrants themselves were unable to resist the 
decrees of fate. Near the Meles stood a brazen statue 
of Domitian, upon which when Apollonius got the eyes 
of the spectators turned, he said, " Thou Fool, how little 
understandest thou the decrees of fate and necessity." For 
he whom they appoint to reign, will reign ; though he 
should be put to death by you, he will again come to 
life to fulfil their laws.f These words were carried to 
Domitian by Euphrates the informer, but no one could 
guess to whom the oracle alluded, whether to Nerva, 



* Homer called Melesigenes, from being supposed to be born on the 
banks of the Meles, and his compositions— Meletece chartce. 

li Posse Meleleas nee mallem vincere chartas." Tibullus. 

t La doctrine dApollone sue le destin, says Du Pin, surpasse en 
extravagance tout ce qu'on peut imaginer. Whoever reasons as Apol- 
lonius does in this place and in others, on the subject of destiny, is a 
bad philosopher, and but a poor defender of the doctrine of fate and 
necessity ; for if the end is ordained by the Fates, the means conducive 

to 



377 

Orfitus, or Rufus. Whereupon the tyrant, to free himself 
from every apprehension, determined to put them all three 
to death ; and to the end that he might not appear to act 
without good reason, he cited Apollonius to appear before 
him to give an account of all his caballing with them. For 
Domitian was of opiniou, that if Apollonius appeared, 
he would be found guilty, and then, that it might be sup- 
posed his accomplices would not suffer till after a fair 
hearing and conviction : or else, that if he should have the 
address to make his escape, that the rest must equally 
suffer, as being declared guilty by the flight of their as- 
sociate. 

CHAP. X. 

WHILST Domitian was considering this, and writing to 
the proconsul of Asia to have Apollonius apprehended and 
brought to Rome, the Tyanean was apprized of it all as 
usual, by means of his Demon.* When he told his friends, 
he was going to undertake a very singular journey, some 
of them called to mind the storyf of the ancient Abaris, 
and thought he was going to make a like one. However, 
without communicating his intention to Damis, he set sail 
with him for Achaia ; and landing at Corinth, and paying 



to that end, must be likewise ordained: and it is of all follies the most 
extravagant to suppose, that a thing will succeed by any other means 
than by those which are absolutely necessary to produce it. 

* It is not necessary, says Mr. Paley, to admit as a miracle, what 
can be resolved into a palse perception ; of this nature was the Demon of 
Socrates — and surely we may add, of Apollonius also. 

t Herodotus says, that the story of Abaris, who was reported to be 
an Hyperborean, and to have made a circuit of the earth without food, 
carried on an arrow, merits no attention. 

Iamblichus tells us that Apollo invested the Hyperborean Abaris 
with the power of flying through the air on a magical arrow, wither- 
soever he pleased. Bayle laughs at the idea of Abaris making his 
entry into Athens riding on a broomstick. 



378 

his vows, which he always did about mid-day, to the Sun, 
he loosed sail in the evening, and made for Sicily and 
Italy. As the wind was fair and the sea calm, he arrived 
on the fifth day at Dicaearchia.* Here it was he met 
Demetrius the philosopher, who shewed, by living so near 
Rome, that he had more coinage than the rest of his bre- 
thren. Apollonius, who know well he had kept out of the 
way of the tyrant, said to him in the way of jest, " I am 
glad to surprise you, Demetrius, in the midst of pleasures, 
in the most charming spot of Italy, (if it is not entitled to 
more praise) in the country f where Ulysses is said to 
have forgotten, in the company of Calypso, J the smoke of 
Ithaca and his family and household Gods." Whereupon 
Demetrius, embracing him, and first deprecating the omen, 
said, " What an injury will not philosophy receive, if a 
man like this should suffer?" " What danger," replies 
Apollonius, u is it to which you allude ?" " None I am 
sure," returned Demetrius, " but what you are prepared 
for : for if I dont know you, I dont know myself. But 
let us not talk here, let us retire to a more private place ; 
yet Damis is not to be excluded, whom, by Hercules, I 
look on as the Iolaus§ of your labours." 



CHAP. XL 

AFTER saying this, he led them to a house which had 
formerly belonged to Cicero, not far from the town. 



* The ancient name of Puteoli. 

+ The situation, and even the existence of Calypso's Island, is dis- 
puted by some writers. Philostratus places it somewhere on the 
Italian shore, probably in the Island Circaeuni, the supposed residence 
of Circe, now joined to the continent, and known by the name of 
Monte Circello. 

% See Odyssey, b. v. for what is noticed in the text. 

$ A son of Iphiclus, king of Thessaly, who assisted Hercules in con- 
quering the hydra. 



S79 

They sat down under a Platanus, on whose boughs some 
Cicadas,* invited by the season of the year, were singing. 
Demetrius looking on them, cried out, how happy and 
truly wise are ye, O Cicada?, who have been taught by 
the Muses a song which has never subjected you either 
to accusation or calumny. By them you are exempted 
from the feelings of hunger, and are given an habitation 
among those trees, beyond the reach of mortal envy, 
whereon you joyfully chant their happiness and your own. 
Apollonius, who well understood the tendency of what 
he said, pretended to find it destitute of that interest and 
concern, which he thought the exigency of the times re- 
quired, and said, I see, Demetrius, you wished to sing 
the praises of the Cicadae ; and as you had not courage 
to sing them in public, have retired to this place for the 
purpose, just as if a law had been passed, forbidding the 
singing of their praises. I spoke so, replied Demetrius, 
not merely to commend them, but to shew the liberty they 
have of singing as they please, whilst we have scarcely 
leave to mutter, and even find that our love of wisdom is 
to be imputed to us as a crime. Even the accusation 
which Anytus and Melitus laid against Socrates, charged 
him only " with corrupting the youth and introducing new 
Deities." But the accusation against us is to the follow- 
ing effect, " Such a one acts wrong, so far as he cultivates 
justice and wisdom ; and in proportion to the superior know- 
ledge he has in divine and human affairs, in law in equity." 



* Cicadae— Insects found in various parts both of the new and old 
continent, where they subsist almost wholly on the leaves of trees, 
and other vegetable substances. The Athenians wove golden Cicadae' 
in their hair, to denote their national antiquity, that, like these crea- 
tures, the,y were the first-born of the earth. Anacreon has an Ode 
addressed to the Cicadae, which, in Moore's beautiful translation, begins 
thus: 

" O thou, of all Creation blest, 
" Sweet insect," &c. 



380 

The more you excel us in wisdom, the more circumspectly 
has the accusation been laid against you. It is Domitian's 
wish to make you an accomplice in the crime for which 
Nerva and his associates are exiled. But for what crime, 
said Apollonius, have they been banished? For that 
which is considered, replied Demetrius, as one of the 
greatest crimes in the eyes of him who prosecutes. He 
says they are guilty of having aspired to the empire, and 
that you are the man who urged them to make the attempt, 
having, as I think, castrated a boy for the purpose. What, 
said Apollonius, could it be supposed that I should castrate 
a boy in order to have the empire possessed by an eunuch? 
It is not on that account, said Demetrius, we are assailed 
with calumnies, but they say you sacrificed a boy to learn 
the secrets of futurity, which are only to be known by the 
inspection of the entrails of such a victim. In the charges 
which are brought against you, some of them relate to 
your dress, others to your particular diet, and there are 
some of them which even proceed to your being worshipped 
by the people. This information I got from Telesinus, 
who is not only my friend, but yours. I should consider 
it a very fortunate circumstance, says Apollonius, were we 
now to meet Telesinus, as I suppose you mean the philo- 
sopher who was consul in the reign of Nero. The very 
same, returned Demetrius; but what is the chance we 
have of meeting him, seeing that tyranny is winged, when- 
ever it is pleased, to attack those in power, who are known 
to hold communication with men who lie under the accusa- 
tions you do ? Telesinus, yielding to the decree which 
banished the philosphers from Rome, abandoned the city, 
thinking it better to go into exile as a philosopher, than 
to remain in the city as a consul. I would not, says Apol- 
lonius, wish him to run any risk on my account, seeing 
that he has encountered so much for the sake of philo^ 
sophy. 






:J81 



CHAP. XII. 

BUT I pray you tell mo, said Apollonius, what it is you 
would advise me either to say or do, in order best to com- 
pose my fears ? Do not jest with me, returned Demetrius, 
nor affect fears where you have none ; for if you thought 
your present situation was attended with danger, you 
should even avoid speaking of it. And would you, said 
Apollonius, try to make your escape were you so circum- 
stanced as I am ? I would not, I swear it by Minerva, 
said Demetrius, if I had any hopes of getting a fair trial. 
But we have here neither law, nor justice, nor a judge to 
hear my defence ; and who, were he even to hear it, will 
have me put to death, though I should be innocent. And 
I know you would be little inclined to give me any indul- 
gence, were I to chuse a cold and ignoble death, instead 
of one becoming philosophy. Now the death which I 
conceive worthy of philosophy, is when a man dies in the 
act of giving liberty to his country, or in avenging his 
parents, his children, brothers, or relations, or his friends ; 
in d^nce^fjof whom, according to the sentiments of the 
wise, a man will risk more than for relations, or even those 
whom love has procured and united to him. But to die 
out of vanity for a cause little approved of, and give the 
tyrant the slightest pretence to suppose he has acted right, 
would be a severer punishment, than the being whirled 
aloft on a wheel in the air, as it is said Ixion is. A chief 
part of your defence will rest on your appearance, which 
you suppose will be placed to the account of a good con- 
science, as it will not be imagined you would have under- 
taken such a journey, had you been conscious of having 
acted wrong. But remember Domitian will not thus 
reason, he will consider your confidence as arising from 
the secret power you possess in the magic art. It is not 
more than ten days since you were cited, and here are 



382 

you ready for trial before any day is appointed for hearing 
you ; and what think you will be the consequence of this ? 
Why, it will give weight to what is said of your having a 
fore-knowledge of the event, and will tend to confirm the 
story of the child. Beware of that coming to pass, which, 
it's said, you supported in Ionia concerning the Fates and 
necessity ; and take care, lest fate is not preparing some 
misfortune which must of necessity fall on you, without 
you bearing in mind, that it is always the part of a wise 
man to be in a state of caution and vigilance. If you 
have not forgotten the days of Nero, you will call to re- 
membrance my situation ; and that I was not one who 
wanted courage to die. And yet they were days which 
admitted of some relaxation, some respite from cruelty ; 
for if the harp of Nero shook off that decorum becoming 
the imperial character, it tended to mitigate its severity. 
Hence we had a truce with blood, a cessation from 
slaughter. Hence I was not put to death, though the 
sword was suspended over me, for these discourses we 
had held together in the bath. And why was I spared ? 
it was because he had succeeded in a favourite song, which 
he thought he had sung to admiration. But to what lyre, 
or harmony of sweet sounds, shall we now sacrifice ? for 
every place is become foreign to the Muses,* and full of 
discord and black bile : Domitian neither deriving com- 
fort from himself, nor any other person. Hear what 
Pindar says in praise of the lyre, " It can appease the 
rage of Mars, and recal him from the field of battle/* 



* Suetonius says, Domitian, in the beginning of his reign, laid aside 
the study of the liberal sciences, though he took care to restore at a 
vast expence the libraries which had been burnt down, by collecting 
copies from all parts, and sending scribes to Alexandria, either to copy, 
or correct from the repository of books at that place. Yet he never 
applied himself to the reading of history or poetry, or to exercise his 
pen for his own improvement. He read nothing but the commen- 
taries and acts of Tiberius Caesar. 



333 

Though the Emperor has instituted musical concerts,* 
and rewards in public the victors with crowns, yet he has 
put to death some of the performers who lately disputed 
the prize in vocal and instrumental music. Besides, you 
should not forget the situation of those f men who are 
named your accomplices, for you will prove their ruin, 
either by shewing too much security, or by saying what 
you will not be able to make believed. Their safety and 
your own are both before you. You see many ships in 
harbour, of which some are bound for Libya, Egypt, and 
Phenicia, others for Cyprus and Sardinia, and some even 
to more distant lands. I should think it wise for you to 
go aboard one of them, and sail to whatever couutry you 
like. Tyranny is always more or less formidable to illus- 
trious men, in proportion as the place of their retirement 
is more or less obscure. 



CHAP. XIII. 

DAMIS, being quite overcome with this discourse of 
Demetrius, said, I trust the friendly advice you give 
Apollonius may have its effect, and be useful to him. 
I own my influence with him avails but little, whenever I 
advise him not to run upon drawn swords, or expose 
himself to a tyranny the cruellest ever experienced. With- 
out seeing you, I should not have known the object of his 
present journey. No one is more about him than I am, 
and yet, when asked where I am going, I appear but in a 
ridiculous point of view when not able to tell ; for here 
am I traversing the Sicilian seas, and Tyrrhenean bays, 



* He likewise instituted, in honour of Jupiter Capitoliuus, a solemn 
contest in music, to be performed every five years, &c. 

Suetonius. 
t Nerva, Rufu», and Orfitus. 



3S4 

and literally know not for what purpose. If I exposed 
myself to danger in a business of which I was informed, 
I should at least have the satisfaction of being able to 
answer all questions that were asked ; for in that case I 
might say Apollonius loves death, that I am his rival, and 
that we sail together. But because I am ignorant of every 
thing, it is right in me only to speak of what I know, and 
that I will speak for the sake of the man If I die, phi- 
losophy will not suffer much by it : inasmuch as I am but 
the attendant of a courageous philosopher, whose sole merit 
consists in following his master. But if they put Apollo- 
nius to death, (as it is ever the spirit of tyranny to exalt 
some, and pull down others) they will have, in my opinion, 
to boast of having raised a trophy for the destruction of 
philosophy in the person of him who of all men was the 
best able to support her. We have to contend with many 
Anytusses and Melitusses ; and many are the accusations 
which are brought from all sides against the friends of 
Apollonius, such as " one man having smiled when he 
glanced at tyranny; another having justified what was 
said ; one having given rise to the discourse, and another 
having departed pleased with what was said." As for 
my part, I think a man should lay down his life for phi- 
losophy, as he would for his altars, and his city, and 
his sepulchres ; and many are the illustrious men who have 
died in defence of such things. But for the sake of de- 
stroying philosophy, I would neither wish to die myself, 
nor any one who loves her and Apollonius. 



CHAP. XIV. 

TO this Apollonius replied, we must pardon Damis's 
great precaution on the present emergency. He is an 
Assyrian, and borders on the Medes, where absolute 
power is r^esfjpted, and consequently it cannot be supposed 



385 

lie can entertain very exalted ideas on the subject of 
civil liberty. But for you, Demetrius, I cannot see in 
what way you can justify yourself to philosophy ; for in- 
stead of adding to Damis's fears, you should rather have 
tried to remove them, even supposing them founded ; I 
think it would have been more becoming you, to have en- 
couraged, as knowing him to be a timid man, who might 
have fears where none existed. The wise man will die 
for the objects you have mentioned ; but he who is not, 
will do the same. The law says we must die for liberty, 
and nature that we must do the same for those connected 
to us by relationship, or friendship, or love. All men 
are subject to the laws of nature, and society : the one we 
obey with our consent, the other we must obey whether we 
consent or not. It is incumbent then on men to die for 
the causes I have mentioned ; but it is" much more incum- 
bent on wise men to die for the studies to which they 
are addicted. For whatever is made the object of their 
choice, independent either of written law, or natural 
instinct, is made so under the inspiration of magnanimity 
and courage ; and consequently any endeavour to destroy 
such an object would be vain; neither fire nor sword 
would terrify a wise man, or make him flinch, or have 
recourse to falsehood or equivocation to save his life ; for 
what he knows, he will as religiously preserve, as if the 
hidden mysteries of Ceres were confided to him. My 
knowledge is greater than that of other men, because I 
know all things.* What I know, I know in part for the use of 
the wise and good, in part for myself and the Gods - y but 
I know nothing for tyrants, let them use whatever threats 
and tortures they please. It is easy to see I am not come 



* B. 3. c. 18. We know all things, says Iaichas, because we know 
ourselves. He had better said, we know nothing, for we know not 
onrselvts 



o 



( 



386 

here on a fool's errand. I am under no apprehensions on 
account of my own life, for the tyrant's power is unable 
to destroy me, even though I wished it myself. On the 
other hand, I find that I endanger the lives of those men, of 
whom the tyrant will make me either the head or the par- 
tisan ; I will be whatever he will wish to make me. But 
were I to betray them through my own indolence, or a 
want of zeal in their favour, what opinion, I pray thee, 
would be formed of me by all good men ? Who is there 
will not justly put me to death for having wantonly sported 
with the lives of those, to whom the Gods granted all I 
asked from them ? I shall now endeavour to shew, that it 
was not possible otherwise to escape the imputation of 
treachery. The disposition of tyranny is two-fold; the 
one passes sentence without hearing, the other leaves the 
passing of it to the courts of law. Tyrants of the first 
class resemble wild beasts of the most active furious natures ; 
tyrants of the second are like wild beasts of a more tame and 
indolent temper. Both species of tyranny are most offensive, 
as appears from the frantic power of Nero, who despised all 
forms of trial and justice, and from the gloomy and slug- 
gish tyranny of Tiberius. The one put to death the un- 
suspecting, who had no apprehension of danger; the other 
the suspecting, who had long been a prey to their fears. 
Yet those tyrannies are in my opinion the very worst, 
which make use of the plea of justice and of a sentence 
pronounced according to law, regardless of any law what- 
ever ; for they pass sentences like tyrannies that observe 
no kind of trial, and use the name of law as a pretext, not 
only to gratify, but conceal their passions. For by the 
very circumstances of having the sentence of death passed 
under the sanction of law, the wretched sufferers are de- 
prived of that general pity, which it is proper to bestow 
in the place of sepulchral garments on those who suffer 
unjustly. I perceive the usage of the present tyranny to 
be of a judicial kind, which gives the shadow of a trial, 
O 



387 

and ends in a total neglect of it. For it passes sentence 
on those whom it previously condemns unheard, exactly 
as if no form of trial whatever was observed. Conse- 
quently he who suffers by the sentence of the judge, evi- 
dently suffers by that sentence alone, and as it were by his 
sole fault, who does not decide according to the laws. 
But he who has forfeited his recognisance, how is it pos- 
sible he can avoid being condemed for it ! If, now that 
the fortunes of so many men are put into my hands, I 
should decline my exertions both for them and myself, to 
what land, I beseech you, could I fly, where I should be 
not tainted with guilt ? Suppose I tc ok your advice, and 
followed it as being the best, and that in consequence of 
it, these men were put to death; what prayers, I ask you, 
could I offer up for a successful voyage ? On what coast 
could I land, or to what people fly ? I must exile myself 
from the whole Roman Empire, and go in quest of friends to 
the unknown parts of the earth? On whose friendship 
could I rely ? Is it on that of Phraotes, or the King of 
Babylon,* or the divine Iarchas, or the generous Thes- 
pesion ? Were I to go to the Ethiopians, what, my 
friend, could I say to Thespesion ? For if I concealed such 
conduct, I should appear not only a lover of lies, but a 
servant of the same ; and if I was to give any account of 
my conduct, I must speak of it in the following manner : 
O Thespesion, Euphrates has accused me to you of crimes 
of which I am not conscious ; he has told you I was a 
boaster, a man fond of the marvellous, and who despised 
the knowledge of the Ethiopians. I am not this, but I 
am the betrayer and the executioner of my friends, and 
one in whom no one places confidence, &c. If a crown 
of virtue is to be given for such qualities, I am come to 
carry it away : I am come to receive a crown for having 
so effectually destroyed some of the first houses in Rome 



* Bardanes. 
C Z C 2 



388 

as to be no longer habitable. I see, Demetrius, you 
blush at hearing this. But what would you do, were you 
to represent to yourself Phraotes and me flying to such a 
man for his protection ! With what face could I look on 
him ? or what reason assign for my flight ? Should I say, 
when I paid my first visit, that I was virtuous and inno- 
cent, and not indisposed to die for my friends ; but that 
after conversing with him, I at your suggestion cast away 
all these most excellent dispositions as things of no value. 
Would Iarchas, were I to make him such a confession, 
condescend so much as to ask me one question : would 
he not drive me from his sacred hill, as Eolus* did 
Ulysses from his island, for having abused the gifts which 
he gave him to secure a successful voyage? and would 
he not tell me I had violated the sacred privilege of the 
cup of Tantalus, which required from all who drank of it, 
a participation of the dangers of their friends. I know, 
Demetrius, how able you are to abridge and appreciate 
all dissertations, and that you would thus naturally address 
me, " go not to the dwellers on the sacred hill, but go to 
men with whom no intercouse of friendship has subsisted; 
if you do this, your flight will turn out successful, and you 
will lie concealed amongst a people who know you not/' 
Let us now consider the weight of this suggestion, and see 
how it is founded. My opinion of it is this. 1 conceive 
a wise man does nothing in private, or alone, or even 
conceals any thing in his mind, so remote from all wit- 
nesses, as not to have himself a witness of what he does. 
And whether the Pythian inscription be Apollo's, or that of 
some mortal, who knew himself, and uttered it as a sen- 
tence to be observed by all men, matters not; I am of 



* Hence — be gone — 
Thou worst of men ! I may not entertain 
Or give safe conduct homeward to a wretch 
Abhorr'd by all in heaven.^— Homek, Odyssey, b. 10. 



389 

opiuion, a wise man who knows himself and examines his 
own mind, does none of those things in private or in retire- 
ment, which vulgar minds think themselves allowed to do ; 
nor dares commit in public, and without shame, what 
others do in sight of all without any shame whatever. 
For they who are the slaves of despotic power, „have 
pleasure in delivering up to it their dearest friends, merely 
because they fear what is not to be feared, and rever- 
ence nothing that ought to be respected. But wisdom 
makes no allowance for such conduct, which, as well as 
the Pythian inscription, sanctions the sentiment of Eu- 
ripides, that it is " Conscience which torments poor mor- 
tals whenever they call to mind their evil doings." Con- 
science that represented to the mind of Orestes** the 
images of the Furies, when he run mad and attacked his 
mother. The mind is free and capable of judging what is 
to be done ; conscience is not, it judges only from the 
images which the mind presents to it. If the mind makes 
virtue the object of its choice, conscience accompanies 
with pleasure the possessor into the temples, and streets, 
and sacred groves, and busy haunts of men. She forsakes 
him not in his sleep, but orders a chorus of dreams to 
join in sweetest harmony of song around him. If the state 
of the mind inclines to do wrong, conscience suffers not 
the culprit to look on men with a fixed countenance, or 
to address them with an unfaltering tongue. She will 
not let him approach tbe temples, nor suffer him to offer 
up his prayers in them. She withholds him from raising 
up his hands to the images of the Gods, and laughs at 
him if he does, as she does at those who come to depre- 
cate a merited punishment. Conscience drives him out of 
company, and frightens him when asleep. Whatever 
persons of this description see during the day, whatever 



* Orestes of Euripides. 



390 

they fancy they either hear or say, all is represented by 
conscience as ideal and visionary ; and on the other hand, 
the idle and fantastic terrors of their own brains are shewn 
as real and dreadful. From what I have said, 1 think I 
have made it very clear, under the guidance of truth itself, 
how much my conscience would condemn me both among 
known and unknown nations, if I should betray those men. 
But I never will be false to myself, and I will combat 
against the tyrant, singing in the language of Homer, 

" Mars is our common Lord, alike to all, 

" And oft the victor triumphs but to fall." Pope. 



CHAP. XV. 

DAMIS writes that he himself was so affected with this 
discourse, that he quite derived new life from it, and adds, 
that Demetrius persisted no longer in holding different 
sentiments from Apollonius, but was loud in his praises, 
saying, he spoke with a divine instinct, and that he was 
entitled to high commendation for the dangers to which he 
exposed himself, as was also his philosophy for the sake of 
which he did it. He then offered to take him and his 
companions to his lodgings, which Apollonius begged 
leave to decline, from the consideration of its growing late, 
and of his sailing in the night, the time appointed for the 
weighing anchor of such vessels as were in harbour. 
However, when times will mend, we shall sup together ; 
at present, occasion might be taken of charging you with 
high treason, should it be known that you had eaten with 
the Emperor*s enemy. I do not wish you even to accom- 
pauy me to the port, lest the very circumstance, of your 
holding discourse with me, might involve you in the sus- 
picion of criminal designs against the government. To 
this reasoning Demetrius assented, and after embracing 
Apollonius, took his leave, every now and then turning 



391 

away his face to wipe off the tears that were falling from 
it. Apollonius then looking on Damis, says, if you are 
possessed of as much courage as I am, let us embark toge- 
ther ; if you are not, it is time you should think of re- 
maining where you are ; you can stay with Demetrius, who 
is our common friend. To which Damis answered, And 
what opinion would the world entertain of me, if after 
what I have heard this day on the subject of friends, and 
their mutual attachment to each other in the times of dan- 
ger, I should decline sharing in yours, and should aban- 
don you now in the hour of greatest need? for as yet I have 
not appeared backward in any thing wherein your interest 
was concerned. Your words are good, said Apollonius, 
let us therefore set out, I will appear in the habit I do at 
present, but for you, I should recommend an ordinary 
habit instead of what you wear ; that you should cut your 
hair, and put on a linen habit, and go without shoes. But 
why I say this, I will now explain. I know we must suf- 
fer much for the particular course of life we have adopted, 
but I am decidedly against your sharing in all its dangers, 
and being cast into prison, which must be the consequence 
if you are betrayed by your habit. I wish you to follow 
me, and to be present at all that passes, as one who in 
other respects loves me, without being sworn to my philo- 
sophy. This was the reason why Damis laid aside his 
Pythagorean garb, which he assures us was done, not from 
any fears or sorrow for having worn it, but from the ap- 
probation which he gave to the idea of Apollonius, to 
which he wished to conform, by reason of the necessity of 
the times. 

CHAP. XVI. 
LEAVING Dicaearchia,* on the third day they cast an- 
chor in the mouth of the Tiber, from whence to Rome 

• Puteoli. 



392 

the passage is neither long nor tedious. The imperial 
sword was then in the hands of iElian the Pretorian pre- 
fect. This man formerly loved Apollonius, and used to 
talk to him when in Egypt. Of this, iElian had taken no 
notice to Domitian by way of defending Apollonius, for 
the nature of his office did not admit his saying any 
thing which might be disagreeable to him. For how could 
he praise to him a man who passed for his enemy ? or in- 
tercede for him as a friend ? However, in private he used 
every means he thought might serve him, without seeming 
at all interested in the matter. When iElian found that 
Apollonius, before his arrival, lay under grievous accusa- 
tions, he thus addressed the Emperor, and said, sophists 
are nothing but prattle and flippancy, the art they profess 
is all for shew, and whenever they are unable to derive a 
maintenance from it, they wish to die. Sophists of this 
description do not wait the voluntary approach of death, 
but anticipate it by provoking those in power to inflict it. 
It was under this consideration, I think, Nero declined 
putting him to death, he knew he wished to die, and there- 
fore, as it were, obliged him to live, not as granting him 
a favour by so doing, but because he thought that by put- 
ting him to death, he would give him too much celebrity. 
This same prince kept Musonius the Tyrrhenian, who op- 
posed. his authority in many instances, shut up in the little 
island of Gyara.* The Greeks took great delight in 
sophists of this kind, and used to sail to the island for the 
sake of talking to him, but now they visit it for its foun- 
tain. For, in this island, formerly destitute of water, 
Musonius discovered a fountain, which is now no less 
praised by the Greeks in their songs, than Caballinusf on 
mount Helicon. 



* Aude aliquid brevibus Gyaris, & carcere dignum, 
Si vis esse aliquis. Jl 1 venal. 

+ A clear fountain on mount Helicon, sacred to the Muses, and 
called also Hippocrene, as raised from the ground by the foot of Pega- 
sus. Caballus, a horse derived from the Greek Ka€«xx»?. 



;93 



CHAP. XVII. 

IT was in this manner iElian tried to soothe the Emperor 
before Apollonius arrived ; but when he did, he used more 
address to the same purpose. He ordered him imme- 
diately to be apprehended and brought before him ; Apol- 
lonius appeared ; his accuser attacked him with great vio- 
lence, charging him with being an enchanter, and excel- 
ling in that art. When iElian heard this, he said to the 
accuser, I request you may reserve yourself and charges 
for the Emperor's tribunal. All Apollonius said, was, 
If I am an enchanter, how can I be brought to trial ? and 
if I am brought to trial, how can I be considered as an 
enchanter? This cannot be, without calumny, as it is 
said, has acquired a power superior to magicians them- 
selves. When iElian found that the accuser was going to 
bring forward some more absurd charge, he stopped him, 
saying, Give me the time which precedes the trial, as in 
it I intend to prove the sophist apart, and not in open 
court. Because, if he confesses the crime, the pleadings 
will be greatly abridged in the case ; but if he does not, 
the Emperor must decide/ iElian then retiring into the 
most private part of the court, where causes only of the 
greatest moment are tried sub silentio, he said, withdraw 
all, and let no one stay to listen, for such is the Emperor's 
pleasure. 



CHAP. XVIII. 

WHEN they were alone, iElian said to Apollonius, I 
was but very young at the time the Emperor's father went 
into Egypt to sacrifice to the Gods, and advise with you 
on the state of his affairs. I accompanied him as 
military tribune, in consequence of the knowledge I pos- 



3[H 

sessed in the art of war. I remember you received me 
with so much kindness, that, when the Emperor was ad- 
ministering justice to the several cities, you took me aside, 
told me who I was, what was my name, and who was my fa- 
ther. You even then told me I should be possessed of my 
present situation, which the majority of people hold to be 
superior to every other human dignity. But, for my part, 
I think it an employment attended with great trouble, 
and a condition of life most wretched. By it, I am the 
guardian of a cruel tyranny, and dread the punishment of 
heaven if I fail in the discharge of any part of my duty. 
I have already given you a proof of my friendship, and 
what I told you from the beginning, of my unceasing re- 
gard for you, may, I think, be sufficient to call to your 
remembrance my character. My wishing to speak to you 
alone on the charges of your accuser, is a mere pretence 
and contrivance of mine to shew you the confidence that 
is to be placed in me, and what you have to expect from 
the Emperor. I know not what sentence he will pass on 
your case, but I know he is very much in the temper of 
those judges who wish to condemn, and yet are ashamed 
to do so without some solid grounds : besides, he is anxious 
to make use of you as a plea to destroy some men of con- 
sular authority. The fact is, he desires to do what ought 
not to be done, and to do it under the cloak of justice. 
This the reason why it is necessary for me to dissemble, 
and to seem to act with a degree of zeal in the business ; 
for if the Emperor once suspected me of proceeding with 
indifference in the cause, I know not which of us would 
be the first to perish. 



CHAP. XIX. 

WHEN Apollonius heard this, he said, As we can now 
speak together without restraint, and as you have opened 



395 

your mind to me, I think it but fair for me to open mine 
to you. You speak of my affairs like a philosopher, like 
one of my old disciples, and as you seem from affection 
disposed to share in my dangers, I will tell you my whole 
heart. I had it in my power to escape by flight, (for still 
there are many parts of the earth not yet subject to your 
power, to which I might have retired). I could have 
found an asylum with wise men, men much wiser than 
myself, who worship the Gods according to right reason ; 
in a country inhabited by a people much more pious than 
the people of Rome, with whom exists neither informa- 
tion nor accusation, the reason of which is, that they 
neither commit injury themselves, nor suffer it to be com- 
mitted by others, and of course have no need of courts of 
justice. But fearing to incur the character of traitor, 
should I decline a defence, and that they who are in dan- 
ger on my account, should suffer in consequence, I am 
come to plead my own cause. I request you may fur- 
nish me with the articles of my accusation, on which it 
will be necessary for me to make my defence. 



CHAP. XX. 

THE articles with which you are charged, said iElian, 
are of different kinds, and not few in number. Among 
them are noticed your dress, your manner of living, and 
the adoration that is paid you — to which is added, the an- 
swer you gave the Ephesians relative to the plague. You 
are charged besides with many things said against the Em- 
peror, of which, some were spoken in private, others in 
public ; and all are affirmed to have been uttered under the 
immediate direction of the Gods. But the charge, which 
of all others is the least credible, and which I know to be 
so, from your known aversion to the shedding of blood, 
is one that appears to the Emperor the most likely to be 



396 

true ; the charge is, that you met Nerva in a field, where 
you sacrificed an Arcadian boy for him ; that you did it to 
procure for him the death of the reigning Emperor, and 
that by this sacrifice you have given Nerva hopes of one 
day obtaining the empire. The above is all said to have 
taken place by night, during the waning of the moon. 
This last charge, by reason of being more serious than the 
rest, is considered as the chief, and only one deserving of 
attention ; for as to what respects your dress, your man- 
ner of living, and knowledge of futurity, all that only tends 
to make the last more probable, and each separately taken 
tends as a collateral circumstance to strengthen your power 
of offending, and your courage to make such a sacrifice. 
This is the accusation, to answer which you must be pre- 
pared, and in the apology you make, I advise you so to 
speak as not to offend the Emperor. As a proof that it is 
not my wish to shew the least disrespect to the Emperor, 
I am come here, said Apollonius, to make my defence. 
And had I the hardyhood to treat with disrespect his pow- 
er, I should submit my conduct to your judgment, first, 
on account of your own worth, and next, the regard you 
have ever shewn for me. To pass for worthless in the 
eyes of an enemy, is not a matter of heavy affliction, be- 
cause it is probable he hates us, not so much for what has 
brought down on us public disgrace, as for what shocks 
him as an individual. But to be esteemed worthless in the 
opinion of a friend, is a much more serious consideration 
than all that can happen from an enemy, because it is pro- 
bable that the dislike of a friend arises only from what 
gives the decided character of being wicked. 



CHAP. XXI. 

LILIAN liked what he said, and encouraged him not to 
despair, as the opinion he formed of him was such, that 



397 

they could not terrify him, even if they held up the Gor- 
gon's* head before him. He then called the keepers of 
the prison, and ordered them to take Apollonius into cus- 
tody, and there detain him till the Emperor's pleasure was 
known, who might now learn from his own mouth what he 
had said : whilst giving these orders, he put on the air and 
look of a man in great wrath. After this, he went to the 
palace to discharge the duties of his office. Here Damis> 
relates a circumstance which was somewhat like what hap- 
pened to Aristrides, who, when banished by Ostracism 
from Athens, on account of his virtue, had no sooner got 
out of the city than he was met by a countryman, who 
asked him to write the name of Aristides on his shell — he 
confessed he did not know the man, nor even how to read 
or write, and all he knew was, that it grieved him to 
hear every one call him just. A tribune happening to 
know Apollonius, asked him in jest the cause ojf his pre- 
sent trouble, to whom he said he did not know. Well, re- 
turned the tribune, I do, and it is the worship paid you by 
some men, which has given rise to the suspicion of your 
wishing to pass for a God. And pray who, replied Apol- 
lonius, has worshipped me ? I myself, said the tribune, 
when a boy, at Ephesus, at the time you delivered us from 
the plague. You did well, answered Apollonius, as did 
the city of Ephesus when delivered from such a calamity. 
With this consideration, continued the tribune, I have 
found out the means of saving you, and drawing you out of 
the above difficulty. Let us go outside the city, and if I 
cut off your head with a sword, the accusation against you 
will fall to the ground, and you will stand acquitted. But 
if you terrify me so as to make the sword drop out of my 
hand, then you will be esteemed a God, and acknowledg- 



* Rigida cum Gorgone Perseus. Claudia*. 



398 

ed as such by a public decree.* Here was a tribune who 
far surpassed in barbarity, him who wished to banish 
Aristides, inasmuch as all he said was done in way of jest 
and mockery. But Apollonius never once affected to hear 
him, for he was talking all the time to Damis on the na- 
ture of the Delta, around which, it is said, the Nile divides 
into two branches. 

CHAP. XXII. 

AFTER this, iElian sending for Apollonius, ordered him 
into the prison where the captives were not bound, and 
there to remain till the Emperor had leisure to speak to 
him, as he wished, in private. When dismissed from the 
tribunal and led back to prison, he said to Damis, Let us 
have some conversation with the people here, for what 
else can we do till the Emperor thinks fit to give us an 
audience. I fear, replied Damis, that the prisoners will 
think us rather officious, and will not be much obliged to 
us if we keep them from thinking of their defence ; and 
besides, I think it will appear rather absurd in us to talk 
to people in grief, and who must have very little inclination 
to hear us. On the contrary, said Apollonius, I think 
people in their situation stand more in need of assistance 
and comfort than others. For were I to call to mind 
what Homer says of Helen'sf mixing certain Egyptian 



* On ne comprend pas bien (says Du Pin) le dessein de cet homme, 
ouplntot de Philostrate dans cette histoire; mais quel qu'il puisse 
@tre, on ne croira jamais, que cela ait pu etre dit serieusemeat, et on 
ne peut excuser Apollone de Papprobation qu' il donne a ceux qui Iui 
avoient rendu des honneurs divins a Ephese. 

t Meantime, with genial joy to warm the soul, 

Bright Helen^mix'd a mirth-inspiring bowl, 

Temper'd with drugs of sov'reign use, t'assuage 

The boiling bosom of tumultuous rage ; 

To clear the cloudy front of wrinkled care, 

And dry the tearful sluices of despair. Homer, Od. b. iv. 



399 

drugs in a bowl, for curing the diseases of the mind, I 
might suppose Helen, who was instructed in the learning 
of Egypt, assuaged sorrow by the enchantments of her 
cup, and applied both the powers of eloquence and wine 
to the comfort of the afflicted. What you say, said Da- 
mis, is likely enough, especially if it is certain that Helen 
came into Egypt, and conversed with Proteus ; or if, as 
Homer says, she was acquainted with Polydanma the wife 
of Thone * However, for the present let us change the 
conversation, as I wish to propose some questions myself. 
I know them already, said Apollonius, you wish to know 
all that passed between JElian and me, and whether his 
manner of receiving me was kind, or not ; and then he 
proceeded to give him a particular account of their inter- 
view, which, when he had finished, Damis adored him, 
and said, that he now entertained no doubt of Leucothea 
having formerly given Ulysses a scarf, f by means of which 
he passed the sea, after the loss of a ship, by only the 
steerage of his arms. For to us who have fallen into 
difficulties great and perilous, I think, says he, some God 
has stretched out a hand to save us from perishing. Here 
Apollonius, not exactly approving of what Damis said, 
replied, how long will you continue to entertain such 
fears, and know not that wisdom deeply affects all who 
are but sensible ofits influence, and is itself affected by 
no one. But, returned Damis, we have now to deal with 
a man who is destitute of wisdom, who cannot be affected 
by us, and who does not suffer himself to be affected by 



* These drugs, so friendly to the joys of life 
Bright Helen learn'd fro/u Thane's imperial wife. 

Homer, Od. b. iv. 
Thon, or Thonis, was King of Egypt. 

t This heav'nly scarf beneath thy bosom bind, 
And live ; give all thy terrors to the wind. 

Homer, Od. b. iv. 



400 

any persoa. Seest thou not, said Apollonius, that Do- 
mitian is inflated with pride, and labours under evident 
insanity. I do, replied Damis, it is impossible not to see 
it. Well then, added Apollonius, the more you are 
acquainted with the tyrant, the more you ought to despise 
him and all he can do. 



CHAP. XXIII. 

WHILST they were talking in this manner, a man from 
Cilicia, I believe, approached, and said to them, all my 
danger, Sirs, arises from my riches. That's not impro- 
bable, answered Apollonius, if you have acquired them 
by means not justifiable ; for instance, by robbery, or by 
the vending of poisonous drugs, or by ransacking* the 
tombs of ancient kings, stored with gold and precious 
treasure ; if, I say, you have been guilty of such dark 
transactions, you ought not only to be called to account for 
the same, but capitally punished. I know that wealth is 
sometimes procured by ways such as these, but then it is 
always accounted infamous and accursed. But if what 
you possess has been acquired by inheritance, or by 
fair, and not usurious dealings, what man has the effrontery 
to dare to deprive you of that under "the colour of* law, 
which has been made under its venerable sanction. My 
property, returned the Cilician, has arisen from numerous 
relations, all which has at last centered in myself; I 
use it not as if it belonged to other people, but I use it 
as my own sole right ; and yet not absolutely as my own, 
because I share it in common with all good men. How- 



* Humana effodiens ossa, thesanrum canis 
Invenit : et violavit quia manes Deos, 
Tnjecta est illi divitiarum cupiditos 
Panas ut sanctae religioni penderet. Pjwedrus. 



401 

ever informers abuse me, and pretend to say that the pos- 
session of such a property cannot be to the iuterest of 
the prince; because, if I attempted any innovation, it might 
be injurious to him; and in case I joined the disaf- 
fected party, it might be of the most serious con- 
sequence. Then allegations are produced like so many 
oracles against me, as, that riches when they exceed 
mediocrity, generate pride; that when they pass the 
common measure of great fortune, they raise the head of 
the possessor above other men, elate the heart, inspire a 
contempt of the laws, and smite, as it were, the very face 
of the magistrates sent out to rule the provinces, and who 
are themselves the slaves of riches, or who overlook the 
crimes of their possessors, merely because they are rich. 
As to myself, when I was young, and not master of one 
hundred talents, 1 laughed at every thing, and had but 
few fears then on account of fortune. And yet when, by 
the death of an uncle, I became in one day possessed of 
five hundred talents, what a change was made in my way 
of thinking ! exactly the same as is made in horses by the 
skill of intelligent grooms, who break and cure them of 
all their bad habits. But after Plutus made such an acces- 
sion to my property, both by sea and land, I became such 
a slave to fear, that part of it I gave to sycophants to stop 
their mouths, part to magistrates to defend me against 
cheats and impostors, part to relations to prevent envyings 
and jealousies, and part to my slaves to keep them from 
growing worse under pretence of being neglected by me. 
To this may be added, that I supported a numerous retinue 
of friends, of whom, some were to superintend my affairs, 
and others to give advice. And notwithstanding all the 
pains I have taken to secure my riches, and to fence them 
round, as it were, by a wall, I am in perils on their ac- 
count, and know not whether I shall come out safe or 
not. When he had done speaking, Apollonius said, take 
courage, Plutus is responsible for your person, for it is 

2 D 



402 

on his account you are in prison ; he will deliver you from 
it, and the necessity you are under of complying with the 
wishes of slaves and informers, to whom you have been 
exposed hitherto for his sake. 



CHAP. XXIV. 

TO the chief magistrate of Tarentum, who was to vin- 
dicate himself from the charge of having omitted to 
say that Domitian was the son of Pallas,* in a sacrifice 
he made, Apollonius thus replied : You, forsooth, believed 
that Pallas never brought forth by reason of her perpetual 
virginity, and yet were ignorant, I suppose, that the 
Goddess was accessary in giving the Athenians a ser- 
pent.f 



CHAP. XXV. 

THE case of one of their fellow prisoners was as follows. 
He possessed a piece of ground in Acarnania, near the 
mouths of the Achilous, from whence lie used to visit 
the EchinadesJ in a little boat. Observing that one of 
these islands was joined to the main land, he planted it 
with goodly trees and sweet-bearing vines ; and made it 



* Minerva, whom he worshipped even to superstition. 

Suetonius. 

t Ericthonius, a deformed monster, with the tails of serpents instead 
of legs, said to be the offspring of Minerva by Vulcan, though properly 
only of Vulcan himself. 

Addison calls her, " The childless Goddess." 

X Five small islands near Acarnania, at the mouth of the river 
Achilous. They have been formed by the inundations of that river, 
and by the sand and mud which its waters carry down, and now bear 
fee name of Curzolari. 



403 

so convenient for living in, that he introduced whatever water 
was necessary for its use from the continent. Hence a sus- 
picion arose, that the Acarnanian was guilty of great crimes : 
his accusers added, he had left the continent because it 
was polluted by him. As Alcmeon, the son of Am- 
phiaurus, after being delivered from the furies who per- 
secuted him on the death of his mother, had retired to 
the mouths of the Achilous, so it was concluded this 
Acarnanian had taken the same resolution from a con- 
sciousness of a similar offence, or one not very different. 
On the part of the Acarnanian, it was said, he did not 
go there for any such cause, but only to enjoy the quiet 
and peace which the place afforded ; let it be what it 
may, it was made an occasion for instituting a suit 
against him, in consequence of which he was thrown into 
prison. 



CHAP. XXVI. 

IT was said there were above fifty persons confined in 
prison, of whom, some laboured under sickness, others 
under dejection of spirits, and some under the expectation 
of death, whilst others bewailed and called on their chil- 
dren, parents, and wives. Of these wretched sufferers, 
many flocked about Apollonius, making bitter complaints 
of their hard situation, to whom he said, turning to 
Damis, these men seem to require that medicine* to which 
I have before alluded. For whether it be the growth of 
Egypt, or the production of every soil, which has wisdom 
enough to gather it, I know not ; but let us give plenty of 
it to these miserable men, lest the present state of their 
sufferings may not take them out of the world before the 



• Helen's Egyptian Drug, mentioned in c. 22. 

2D2 



404 

sentence of Domitian. I agree with you, replied Damis, 
in thinking they should get plenty of it, for greatly do they 
seem to require it. Whereupon Apollonius, calling them 
together, thus addressed them. O you, who are my 
fellow companions in this dreary abode, I am sorry to 
see you putting yourselves to death before it is 
known whether the information against you will destroy 
you. I think you are killing yourselves before the 
judge pronounces sentence, and are bold in what you 
ought to have fears, and have fears in what you ought to 
be bold. You should not so conduct yourselves, but 
should remember the words of Archilochus the Parian, 
who said, that patience under adversity, which he called 
endurance, was an invention of the Gods to enable men 
to bear the evils of life, after the manner of those, who 
by superior skill and judgmeut, are able to get the better 
of the waves at the time they are rising above the sides of 
the vessel. Account not then those things so hard, which 
you endure and cannot help, and to which I have exposed 
myself of my own free will and consent. For if you are 
conscious of guilt, you should lament the day in which 
your hearts deceived you, and made you commit actions 
at once unjust and cruel. But if you, Sir, say that you 
did not inhabit an isle near the Achilous, for the reasons 
assigned by your accuser; nor that you, Sir, disposed of 
your wealth in a way to hurt your prince, nor that it was 
your intention, Sir, to strip him of his title of being called 
the son of Minerva ; if, I say, you are able to prove, that 
all the reasons held out for your being here, are unfounded, 
why all these whinings and lamentations for nothing? 
Believe me, your courage should rise in proportion to 
the sorrow you feel for them most nearly connected with 
you. These are the trials of patience. Perhaps you 
think it a hard thing to be detained here, and to live in a 
prison ? Or think perhaps that this is only the beginning 
of sorrow? Or else suppose it punishment sufficient, 



405 

though you may not suffer more ? But for me, who 
am acquainted with the nature of man, I will give you 
some instruction which is not inferior to the prescriptions 
by physicians, particularly as what I give procures strength 
and releases from death. Whilst we live, we are all men 
in prison. Our soul, attached to this mortal body, suffers 
much, and is subject to all the vicissitudes of mortality. 
The men who first built houses, never supposed they 
were inclosing themselves in a second prison. For un- 
doubtedly they who inhabit the strongest fortified palaces, 
are to be considered in closer custody than they whom 
they put in chains. When I turn my eyes to cities and 
fortifications, I find them only to be common prisons* 
So that in truth, merchants and orators, frequenters of 
the public shews, and the managers of the same, are all 
only so many prisoners. The Scythians* who live in 
waines, are as much in prison as we are : they are shut iu 
by the Ister, the Thermodon, and Tanais rivers, which 
can only be passed when congealed with ice. They spread 
awnings over the waines in which they travel, by means 
of which they are inclosed in small dwellings. And if it is 
not to be considered as too puerile an observation, I should 
«ay that the ocean incloses the earth as it were with a 
chain. J)raw near, ye poets, (for it is your deeds I am 
going to relate) and sing to these poor afflicted prisoners, 
how that Saturn of old was bound by the artful contrivance 
of Jupiter; and Mars the belligerent was confined by 
Vulcan in heaven, and by the Aloidae in earth .f Think 



* Called from so living, Hamaxobii. 

t Othus and Ephialtus sons of Aloeus the giant. 

The mighty Mars in mortal fetters bound, 
And lodg'd in brazen dungeons under ground, 
Full thirteen moons imprison'd roar'd in vain, 
Otus and Ephialtes held the chain : &c. 

Homer, Pope, b. 5. 



406 

of all this, and of the number of wise and powerful men 
whom the tyranny of the people, or of the prince, has 
thrown into prison, and never let it be said that we 
are not equal to them in bearing like calamities. What 
Apollonius said, had such an effect on the prisoners, that 
some of them took food, whilst others wiped away their 
tears, and entertained hopes that no harm could befal them 
as long as Apollonius was with them. 



CHAP. XXVII. 

NEXT day, whilst Apollonius was haranguing in the 
same strain, a person entered the prison, who was sent 
by Domitian to take note of our philosopher. He had 
a melancholy air, and was, as he said himself, in immi- 
nent danger. He had great volubility of speech, and 
talked much after the manner of those pleaders who have, 
had the drawing up of eight or ten malicious informations. 
Apollonius seeing at once the snare that was laid for him, 
said nothing which could serve his purpose. He talked 
of rivers, and mountains, and wild beasts, and trees : all 
this, whilst it amused the other prisoners, profited nothing 
the informer. He tried, however, to induce Apollonius 
to say something to the disadvantage of the tyrant ; but he 
was on his guard, and said, you may say any thing you 
please, my friend, for I will not turn informer : as to 
myself, I will tell the Emperor in person whatever I think; 
reprehensible in his conduct. 



CHAP. XXVIII. 

OTHER circumstances fell out in the prison, of which 
some were designedly and insidiously contrived, others the 
effects of mere chance ; all were however of no great 



407 

moment, and deserved little attention. Damis speaks of 
them, in order not to be charged with any omission. Such 
as merit attention, I shall notice. On the evening of the 
fifth day of his confinement a stranger came into the 
prison, who used the Greek tongue, and asked where the 
Tyanean was. As soon as he was shewn him, he took 
him aside from the other prisoners, and said, the Emperor 
will speak to you to-morrow ; and this information he 
seemed to have received from iElian. This is a secret I 
understand, said Apollonius, for it is what iElian alone 
could know. The messenger proceeded, orders are given 
to the keeper of the prison to supply you with what you 
want. That is doing what is right, said Apollonius, but 
my manner of living is the same here as it is in every 
place else. I talk on common occurrences as usual, and 
I want nothing. But, returned the messenger, would not 
you wish for the advice of a friend, O Apollonius, just to 
say how you should address the Emperor. I should, in- 
deed, said Apollonius, provided he were not one who 
would advise me to flatter him. But suppose, replied the 
messenger, he was to advise you not to treat him with 
disrespect, nor speak to him with any kind of insolence? 
I thank you for the advice, said Apollonius, it is good, and 
what I am determined to follow. To give this advice, 
answered the messenger, was the cause of my coming 
here, and I am rejoiced you are resolved to keep your 
temper, and act in obedience to it. I thought it right to 
prepare you to support, as you ought, the voice and terri- 
ble * countenance of the Emperor ; for the former is 
harsh and dissonant, even when he wishes to speak gently 



* Pliny, in his panegyric, says, he was visu terribilis. Tacitus says 
he had sctvus valtus. Murphy has thus translated the whole passage, 
" With that fiery visage, of a dye so red, that the blush of guilt could 
never colour his cheek, he marked the pale, languid countenance of 
the unhappy victims who ihuddered at his frown. 



403 

to you, and the latter is furnished with a pair of eye-brows 
which hang heavy over his eyes, and with cheeks so bloated 
with bile as to distinguish him from all other men. But 
let not these things, O Tyanean, intimidate you, for they 
are natural and unavoidable defects. When Ulysses, re- 
plied Apollonius, entered the cave of Polyphemus, he 
neither knew his gigantic stature, nor the kind of food he 
used, nor his thundering voice ; he did not lose his presence 
of mind, and though at first he entertained some fears, 
he soon recovered his accustomed courage ; and acting 
like a man of spirit, he left the cave in perfect safety. For 
my part I shall be satisfied if I can escape myself, together 
with my companions, for whose sakes I am in my present 
perilous situation. All that passed in conversation with 
the messenger he repeated to Damis, and then went to 
sleep. 

CHAP. XXIX. 

ABOUT break of day a notary belonging to the-Emperor's 
tribunal arrived, with orders for Apollonius to attend the 
palace at noon, not, said he, for the pleading your cause, 
but that the Emperor may see what you are, and may 
speak to you face to face. But why, replied Apollonius, 
do you speak to me on that subject? What, said the 
notary, are not you Apollonius ? Yes, I am the Tyanean. 
And to whom then, returned the notary, should I deliver 
my orders, if not to you? To those officers, replied 
Apollonius, whose business it is to conduct me to the 
palace, for you know I must come out of prison. I have 
given proper orders for that purpose to the guards, said 
the notary, and I will take care to be punctual as to time. 
My duty is to give you this information in consequence of 
the orders which were give to me late the evening before^ 
and saying this, he departed. 



409 



CHAP. XXX. 

WHILST Apollonius was in bed, he said to Damis, I 
have need of sleep, I have passed a sleepless night in call- 
ing to mind all Phraotes said to me. I think, said Damis, 
you had done better, had you remained awake, and pre- 
pared for the announced interview, as being a matter of 
some moment. And how can I, replied Apollonius, 
prepare for what I am as yet ignorant of ? And is it your 
intention, said Damis, to argue a cause, in which your life 
is concerned, without any preparation ? It is, replied 
Apollonius, for as my way of life has been hitherto with- 
out preparation, it shall remain so to the end of it. But 
I shall now tell you all that occurred to me of what 
Phraotes said, as bearing on my present situation. In the 
taming of lions Phraotes ordered no severity to be used, 
from an idea that such treatment would not be forgotten ; 
nor on the other hand did he recommend too much gentle- 
ness, lest it might tend to make them unmanageable ; but 
both methods properly blended, he thought best adapted to 
render them more tame and manageable. This advice of 
Phraotes was not given for the purpose of taming lions, 
for we were not then reasoning on the best mode of 
managing wild beasts, but on that of putting a bridle into 
the mouths of tyrants, which he hoped whoever would 
apply, would do it in a \vay not to exceed the bounds of 
moderation. A lesson of this kind, says Damis, is well 
suited to the nature of tyrants. In JEsop there is a fable 
of a lion who lay stretched out in his den, not sick, but 
only pretending to be so, for the purpose of seizing on 
every animal who came to visit him. But iEsop adds, 
there was a fox, who, in considering the case of this lion, 
observed, I do not find that any one remains with him, nor 



410 

the footsteps of any who return from him.* And yet, 
said Apollonius, I should have thought more of the fox's f 
wisdom, had he entered the cave without suffering himself 
to be taken ; and on his return, had been able to shew his 
own footsteps. After saying this, he had some sleep, light 
and of short continuance. 



CHAP. XXXI. 

AS soon as it was day, Apollonius paid his adorations 
to the rising Sun, as well as he could in a prison, and 
talked to all who came to him on whatever subjects they 
liked themselves. About mid-day an officer arrived, order- 
ing his attendance at the palace, who said he came to 
have him in readiness before he was called, As soon as 
Apollonius heard this, he said, " Let us go," and forth- 
with set out with some eagerness. He was guarded by 
four men who attended him, but who kept at a greater 
distance from him than was their custom when guarding 
a common prisoner. Damis followed him, but followed 
him with great fear and pensiveuess. All eyes were turned 
upon him ; his singular dress attracted their attention, and 
the admiration which his whole appearance excited, bor- 
dered on something divine. The dangers he encountered 
for the sake of Nerva, Rufus, and Orfitus, conciliated the 
affection of all, even of his enemies. Whilst he stood at 
the palace gates, he particularly noticed the attentions and 
the compliments which were mutually given and received 

* Quia me vestigia terrent 

Omnia te adversura spectantia, nulla retrorsum. 

Horace. 
t The fox, I think, shewed himself wiser than Apollonius, in not 
going to the den at all. 



411 

by different classes of people, together with the noise and 
hurry attending such as were passing and repassing ; after 
considering it all, he said, this scene reminds me of a bath, 
for they who are without, are trying to get in, and they 
who are within, are trying to get out; the former are 
like those who have not bathed, and the latter those who 
have. This idea I wish to have appropriated solely to 
Apollonius, and not ascribed to any other person : it is so 
peculiarly his property, that he has used it in one of his 
letters. Observing in the crowd a man worn out with 
years, canvassing for the government of a province, and on 
that account paying the most servile court to the Emperor, 
he says, O Damis, Sophocles himself would be unable to 
persuade this man to fly a wild and furious master. Whom, 
replied Damis, we have of our own accord chosen, Apol- 
lonius, and for that now stand before these doors. I 
believe, Damis, said Apollonius, you imagine CEacus to 
be the keeper of these gates, as he is said to be of those 
of Hell, for you appear to me like a dead man. Not 
quite a dead man, returned Damis, but one about to die 
shortly. So, Damis, said Apollonius, you still seem rather 
averse to death, notwithstanding your long attachment to 
me, who have been a philosopher from my youth. I 
thought you prepared for death, and instructed, as well as 
myself, in all the necessary means of defence. And as 
courage is necessary for great warriors, together with a 
knowledge of tactics sufficient to instruct them in the best 
mode of attack, in the same manner should philosophers 
consider the time most fitting them to die, at which they 
should leave the world with the greatest deliberation, and 
not after the manner of men taken by surprise and unpre- 
pared. I have proved in a set apology in your presence, 
and often and fully to yourself, that my mind is always on 
reflection prepared for death whenever any person is 
pleased to inflict it, and that in a way most becoming a 
philosopher. But of this subject enough. 



412 



CHAR XXXII. 

AS soon as the Emperor was at leisure and free from 
business, Apollonius was introduced into the palace by the 
officers in waiting, who took care not to let Damis follow 
him. The Emperor having on his head a garland of 
green boughs, had stopt in the hall of Adonis. This hall 
was embellished with shells of flowers, like as are carried 
about by the Assyrians in their sacred festivals ; * and 
these shells were so arranged as to be under the protec- 
tion of the same roof with the hall itself. The Emperor, 
who was still intent on the sacrifice in which he had been 
engaged, turning about, and being struck with the extra- 
ordinary appearance of the man, cried out, O JElian, you 
have brought me a Demon. At this, Apollonius, without 
being in the least intimidated, taking occasion from what 
he heard, said, O Emperor, I was considering you like 
Diomed at Troy under the protection of Pallas, f who 
purged his eyes of that mist which dims the sight of mor- 



* The A&wtf, or feasts of Adonis, were celebrated in most of the 
cities of Greece in honour of Venus, and in memory of her beloved 
Adonis. Images or pictures of Adonis and Venus were brought forth 
with all the pomp and ceremonies used at funerals — the women tore 
their hair, beat their breasts, &c, They also carried with them shells 
filled with earth, in which grew several sorts of flowers and herbs, 
particularly lettuces ; in memory that Adonis was laid out by Venus 
on a bed of lettuces. These were called mmi, gardens, and hence 
A&vvifo; ttnvoi were proverbially applied to things unfruitful and fading* 
because these herbs were sown only a short time before the festival* 
after which they were cast out into the water. It is manifestly in this 
sense that Plato, Plutarch, and the Emperor Julian, employed this 
proverb, the hint of which was borrowed from the pots and baskets of 
flowers which were carried in the above procession. 

t I also purge thy sight ; the mist, that once 
Obscured it, fled, thou shalt distinguish Gods 
From mortals clearly : Homer, Iliad, b. v. 



413 

tals, and gave him the faculty of distinguishing between 
Gods and men. But from your eyes, O Emperor, the 
Goddess has not yet removed that mist, otherwise you 
would have known better Pallas herself, and not have 
ranked men among the appearances of Demons. But 
how long, philosopher, replied the Emperor, is it since 
your eyes were purged of their darkness ? It is a good 
while now, returned Apollonius, it is from the time in 
which I began to study philosophy. And how has it come 
to pass that you have considered as Gods my greatest ene- 
mies, said the Emperor? What, answered Apollonius, 
do you war with Iarchas and Phraotes, Indians, whom of 
all other men, I consider as divine and deserving of the 
appellation of Gods? I beg you may not turn the con- 
versation to Indians, but answer me as to Nerva, your 
intimate friend, and his accomplices. What, said Apollo- 
nius, do you command me to plead his cause, or not ? I 
do, returned the Emperor ; plead it, for he is already con- 
victed of his crime. And are not you also arraigned as 
being privy to the same ? This is what I wish to be in- 
formed of? Listen, said Apollonius, and you shall hear 
how far I am concerned, for why should I conceal the 
truth ? From this the Emperor had hopes of coming at 
some notable secrets, and concluded that every thing now 
promised fair for the ruin of these men. 



CHAP. XXXIII. 

WHEN Apollonius perceived that the Emperor's expecta- 
tions were raised to the highest pitch, he said, I know 
Nerva to be one of the most moderate and mildest of 
men ; I know that he is much attached to you, and is an 
excellent magistrate, and one so little disposed to meddle 
in affairs of state, that he even shrinks from the honours 
attending them. Besides, his friends, Rufus and Orfitus, 



414 

are, in my opinion, moderate men and despisers of worldly 
wealth ; they are, in short, as far as I know them, men 
too backward to interfere where they ought, and is lawful * 
Men of this description, O Emperor, do not readily 
attempt innovations in governments, nor have much in- 
clination to lend assistance to those who do. On hearing 
this, the Emperor, burning with anger, exclaimed, And 
have you found me guilty of uttering a calumny against 
those men ? Do you recommend as peaceable and loyal 
subjects those whom I have found out to be the vilest of 
mortals, and the common disturbers of my empire : men 
who, if interrogated about you, would probably say that 
you were neither an enchanter, nor hot-headed, nor a 
braggadocio, nor covetous, nor a despiser of the laws, so 
much are ye all agreed in mischief, ye wicked ones. But 
the charge now preferred against you, will bring all to 
light : for I know as well as if I had been on the spot 
with you, the oath which was taken on the occasion, and 
the cause and time of you meeting, and the sacrifice offer- 
ed- But Apollonius, without being intimidated by what 
he heard, said, it is not honest in you, O King, nor agree- 
able to law, either to enter into a judicial discussion of 
what you are already persuaded, nor to be persuaded of 
that of which the merits have not been discussed. If 
such is your pleasure, permit me to begin my defence, 
with saying that you are prejudiced against me, and more 
unjust than the common informer ; for what he has pro- 
mised to prove, you take for granted without any proof. 
Begin then, said Domitian, your defence, from whatever 
circumstance you please, as to myself I know where I 
ought to begin, and end. 



* Martial has an Epigram characteristic of Nerva's disposition. 
" Quanta qnies placidi, tanta est facundia Nerva? — 
" Sed cohibit vires, ingeniumque pudor." 



415 



CHAP. XXXIV. 

AFTER this the Emperor began to treat him with great 
contempt : he ordered his hair and beard to be cut off,* 
and to be sent back to prison loaded with irons, and cast 
among the vilest felons. It was on this occasion Apollo- 
nius said he did not know he incurred any danger on 
account of his hair : and added, if, O Emperor, you con- 
sider me as an enchanter, how can you think of binding 
me in chains ? I have bound you, returned the Emperor, 
and I will not let you go till you first become either water, 
or a wild beast, or a tree. Though I was capable of be- 
coming what you say, answered Apollonius, I will not do 
it, lest I should betray those men who run the risque of 
being unjustly put to death. What I am, that I will 
remain, subject to all you can inflict, till I have pleaded 
their cause. And who, said the Emperor, will defend 
you ? Time, answered Apollonius, and the spirit of the 
Gods,*f and the love of philosophy, to which I have been 
addicted. 



CHAP. XXXV. 

THIS, says Damis, was the preamble to the defence made 
by Apollonius in private before Domitian. There are 
some who give an invidious turn to the whole transaction, 



* The cutting off the hair of guilty persons, seems to have been a 
punishment rather shameful, than painful : and yet it is thought that 
pain was added to the disgrace, and that they sometimes tore off the 
hair with violenct, as if they were plucking a bird alive. 

t A mode of speech rare amongst heathens, which Olearius sup- 
poses Apollonius learnt at Babylon. Daniel, in whom is the spirit of 
the holy Gods. c. 4, v. 8. 



416 

and say that he first made his defence, was then put in 
irons, and afterwards shaved. They have also forged a 
letter, written in the Ionic dialect, and tediously prolix, 
wherein Apollonius is made to deprecate as a suppliant, 
the chains ordered by the Emperor. It is true that Apol- 
lonius wrote his will in that dialect ; but though I have 
made a collection of most of his letters, I never saw one 
written in the same language. Besides, I never discovered 
he was prolix in his style ; his letters being all concise, 
and composed after the manner of the dispatches of the 
Lacedemonian Scytale.* There can be no doubt of his 
coming off superior in his cause ; and if so, how did it 
happen he was put in chains after sentence passed ? But 
the question is not now of what took place at the trial, 
but of what preceded it, relative to the cutting of his hair, 
and the conversation on the occasion, which I have deemed 
worthy of notice. 



CHAP. XXXVI. 

TWO days after he was bound in chains, a stranger enter- 
ed the prison, who said he could be of considerable service 
to him, if allowed a conference, and that the object of 
his visit was to advise with him on his present situation. 
He was a Syracusan,f the mind and tongue of Domitian, 
and like one some time ago, was suborned by the Em- 
peror ; but the part he had to act was better contrived 
and more difficult to be found out. The first took a most 
circuitous way of sounding Apollonius; the one we are 
now speaking of, began his attack at once, exclaiming, 
who, O ye Gods, could have thought of binding Apollo- 



* As expressive of their brevity. 

t This is agreeable to the style of speaking among the Persians, 
whose kings called their ministers, their ears and eyes. 



417 

nius in chains ? He who did it, replied Apollonius ; and 
he would not have done it, had he not thought himself ca- 
pable of it ; and who, continued the Syracusan, could have 
thought of cutting off your ambrosial hair 1 Myself, said 
Apollonius, who let it grow. And how do you bear your 
confinement ? As a man should do, who came here, not 
entirely of his own accord, nor yet entirely against it. 
But pray, said the Syracusan, how do your legs bear the 
fetters ? I know not, answered Apollonius, for my mind 
is otherwise employed. And yet, continued the other, the 
mind is in general affected by the sufferings of the body ? 
Not at all, said Apollonius, because the mind, in a man 
of courage, will either not feel pain ; or if it does, will be 
able to lighten it. And how, says the other, is the mind 
all the time employed ? In not thinking of it, said Apol- 
lonius. The Syracusan then turned the conversation to the 
subject of the cutting off his hair, when Apollonius observed, 
it is well, young man, you were not one of those Greeks 
who sailed to Troy ; for if you had, how much would you 
have lamented the loss of Achilles's hair, which he cut off 
in honour of Patroclus (if it was cut off) and how sorely 
would you have been distressed : for, if as you say, you 
really grieve for mine, among which are scattered many 
gray and squalid locks, what would have been your suffer- 
ings for the loss of his golden hair, so nicely trimmed and 
curled? All the Syracusan said, was spoken with the 
insidious design of trying his temper, and finding out 
whether he would reproach the Emperor for his sufferings. 
Being at last reduced to silence by the answers which fell 
from the lips of Apollonius, he said, you have incurred the 
Emperor's displeasure on many accounts, but particularly on 
account of Nerva and his friends having made their escape, 
though guilty of high treason. Certain false accusations 
have been also carried to him of some discourses held by 
you when in Ionia, and which have been reported as 
uttered with most hostile tendency. But as far as I un- 

2 E 



418 

derstand, he pays little or no attention to such calumnies, 
because his displeasure on the present occasion has arisen 
from subjects of higher moment. And yet the man who 
has given him all his present information, is one who 
stands high in reputation. You allude, said Apollonius, 
to some person who has gained a crown at the Olympic 
Games, and now supposes he can acquire another byexcel- 
ling in calumny. I know you mean Euphrates, who has 
calumniated me, and to whom I am indebted for other 
instances of similar kindness. This man, when he learnt I 
was going to visit the Gymnosophists in Ethiopia, even 
there had his malicious calumnies gone before me ; and 
had I not had a previous knowledge of his wicked machi- 
nations, I might have been forced to return without having 
seen them. The Syracusan, amazed at what he heard, 
said, do you think it then of less account to be accused by 
the Emperor, than to be under-rated by the Gymnosophists 
on account of what Euphrates said. I do indeed, said 
he, for I went to them to acquire knowledge, and to you 
I am come to communicate it. To communicate what, 
are you come ? returned the Syracusan. That I am of 
good and honest repute, replied Apollonius, of which the 
Emperor is ignorant. But I think, said the Syracusan, 
you would consult your own interest better, if you should 
tell him now, what if you had done before, you would 
never have been cast into prison. When Apollonius 
found that the discourse of the Syracusan was of the same 
tendency with that of the Emperor, and that it was expect- 
ed he was to turn evidence against the men from dislike to 
his confinement, he said, if, my friend, I have merited 
these chains by speaking the truth to Domitian, what do 
you think I should gain by telling him the contrary ? When 
he said this, the Syracusan left the prison, declaring that he 
admired Apollonius as a man who was more than a philo- 
sopher. 




419 



CHAP. XXXVII. 

AS soon as he was gone, Apollonius, turning to Damis, 
says, did you understand that Python? I did, said he, 
and knew he was suborned for the very purpose of taking 
you by surprise: but I know not what you mean by 
Python, or who he was ? Python,* returned Apollonius, 
was a Byzantine orator, a man, in the opinion of some, 
possessed of great powers of persuasion. He was sent 
by Philip, the son of Amyntas, to persuade the Greeks 
to submit to his yoke, who, regardless of the other Greeks, 
cultivated the Athenians alone, amongst whom the art of 
rhetoric flourished. He complained of the injuries they 
did Philip, and said they were highly criminal in their 
endeavours to restore Greece to its liberty, of which, they 
say, he made a public declaration before the people. 
But Demosthenes, the Paeanian, opposed this audacious 
man with great spirit, and writes that he alone was a 
match for him in speaking. For my own part I do not 
think my having made resistance to such a train of machi- 
nations a matter of very great consequence ; he had the 
same part to act that Python had, for he was bribed by 
a tyrant's gold to give the worst advice. 



CHAP. XXXVIII. 

DAMIS says Apollonius held many conversations of the 
same kind, but for himself he confessed he had lost all 



* Python, a native of Byzantium, in the age of Philip of Macedon. 
He was a great favourite of that monarch, who sent hira to Thebes, 
when that city, at the instigation of Demosthenes, was going to take 
arms against him. 

2e2 



420 

hopes/ and saw no other way of escaping from their pre- 
sent difficulties, except what might arise from prayers to 
the Gods, which had saved them from greater perils. 
Sometime before mid-day, Damis said to him, O Tyanean 
(an appellation with which he was always pleased) what do 
you think will become of us? Nothing but what has 
usually happened to us, returned Apollonius, for there is 
no one will put us to death. And do you think, replied 
Damis, any one is invulnerable ? Who, after saying this, 
asked, But when, Sir, will you be set at liberty ? To- 
morrow, answered he, if it depended on the judge ; and 
this instant, if it depended on myself. And without a 
word more,* he drew his leg out of the fetters, and said 
to Damis, You see the liberty I enjoy, and therefore I 
request you will keep up your spirits. It was on this oc- 
casion, Damis says, he was first sensible of Apollonius 
possessing a nature something divine, and above what was 
human. For without offering sacrifice, which he could 
not do in a prison, without sending up any prayers to the 
Gods, and without saying a word, he made a mockery of 
his fetters ; and again put his leg into them, and continued 
to behave like men in chains. 



CHAP. XXXIX. 

OPERATIONS of this kind are ascribed to magicians 
by weaker mortals, who are subject to similar mistakes 
in many other things, the mere effects of human industry. 



* As Damis's word is not enough to prove the fact mentioned in the 
text, it consequently can only be considered as the unfounded assertion 
of a weak man, easily imposed on, who was willing to magnify the 
character of his master at the expeuce of truth : therefore he who 
wishes to be deceived by the evidence of such a Sancho Panca, let 
him, I say, be deceived. 



421 

The very athletae, and other candidates at the Olympic 
Games, fly to the magic art* from a desire of victory; and 
yet if they knew the truth, they would know that such 
means avail but little in securing it. Whatever success they 
meet with, is imprudently ascribed, not to themselves, but 
the magic art ; and what is strange, is, that when the very 
contrary happens, it is attributed to the same cause. For 
they all say, had they sacrificed this thing, or burnt that, 
victory would not have deserted them ; and of this they say 
they aie persuaded. A similar species of folly pervades the 
houses of the merchants, who ascribe the profits arising 
from trade, to the arts of the enchanter, and their 
losses to a parsimony in sacrificing in a manner 'hdequate 
to their means. But people in love, above all others, are 
devoted to this art, for they labour under a malady, 
which so peculiarly makes them the dupes of this impo- 
sition, that they have recourse even to the assistance and 
advice of old women. Nothing worthy of admiration is 
ever executed by those who consult the professors of this 
art, and lend their ears to magicians, who give out 
charmed girdles,f and stones,J some dug out of the 



* Ammianus Marcellinus writes, that one Hilaruis, a horse-racer, 
was put to death by Apronianus, then governor of Rome, for being 
convicted of having sent his son to a magician to be -taught by him 
certain secret spells and charms, by which, without any man's know- 
ledge, he might be enabled, in the way of his profession, to effect all he 
desired. A magician in those ages, says Dr. Douglas, bishop of Salis- 
bury, was looked upon (as appears from Origen, adds he) to be one 
who, by the use of certain incantations and charms, and forms of bar- 
barous words, or by the celebration of certain odd rites, could force 
superior beings or demons to assist him. 

t QafpaHsta — A divination commonly performed by certain medicat- 
ed and enchanted compositions of herbs, minerals, &c. To this also 
belonged enchanted girdles and other things worn about the bodies, &c. 
Sume Cytheriaco medicatum nectare ceston : Martial. 

t Called AtQofxavTua— it was performed by a precious stone called 

Sderites, 



422 

bowels of the earth, and others that have fallen from 
the moon and stars : to which they add all the aromatics* 
that grow in the gardens of the Indians : by such means 
great fortunes are made by these people, and no good ever 
done to their duped votaries. If affection meets with 
a return, either from the good pleasure of the object 
beloved, or from the force of presents, the magic art is 
praised as ail-powerful ; but if it does not, the failure is 
laid to the accourit of something being omitted either in 
the burning or sacrificing the victim, or melting f some- 
thing in the fire that ought to have been done ; a matter 
looked on by them as of great moment. The means such 
impostors use to perform their wonderful tricks, have been 
all described by writers, who have uniformly derided the 
art. As to myself it is enough, by way of digression, to 
have shewn to young people that they should never form 
any connection with such false pretenders, or make them- 
selves familiar with their practices, even in merriment an<$ 
sport. I have done, for why dwell on a subject which is 
as contrary to the laws of nature, as it is to the laws of 
the land. 



CHAP. XL. 

WHILST Apollonius was shewing Damis what kind of 
man he was, and talking to him on a variety of subjects, 
a certain person entered the prison about mid-day, with 
the following verbal message from Domitian. The Em- 



Siderites, which they washed in spring water in the night by candle- 
light. 

* Verbenosque adole pingues, et mascula thura. Virgil. 

t Haec ut cera liquescit 

Uno codemque igni sic nostro Daphnis amore. Virgil. 



423 

peror, says he, at the solicitation of iElian, orders you to 
be loosed from your fetters, and gives you leave to in- 
habit a more roomy apartment till the time for making 
your defence arrives, and which, I hear, will be allowed 
you five days hence. But who, said Apollonius, will 
take me out of this place? I myself, answered the 
stranger, come, and follow me. As soon as they who 
inhabited this new part of the prison where Apollonius 
was carried, cast their eyes upon him, they all run and 
embraced him, as one restored to them contrary to all 
expectation. For like as children love their parents, who 
give them good advice with gentleness, and tell all that 
befel them in their youth, so did these prisoners ex- 
press their regard for Apollonius, in the most public 
manner. As to Apollonius, he never ceased giving ad- 
vice. 



CHAP. XLL 

THE day after Apollonius called Damis to him, and 
said, I must make my defence at the time appointed: 
but do you, my friend, take the road leading to Dicaear- 
chia,* and go on foot, as it is the better mode of tra- 
velling ; you will salute Demetrius, and then turn to the 
sea-side, where is the island of Calypso, and there you 
will see me. What, alive,*]- said Damis, or how else ? 
At hearing this, Apollonius laughed, and answered, alive 
in my opinion, but in yours, raised from the dead. J 



* Puteoli. 

t See b. 8, c. 10. 

X On voit par-la (says Du Pin) que Philostrate affecte de relever 
les moindres circonstances des discours et des actions d'ApoIlone, a- 
fin de les faire passer pour des merveilles et de les faire cadrer auv 
evenements qu'il suppose ctre arrivez. 



424 

After this, Damis says, he set out sore against his will, 
doubtful between hope and fear, and not knowing whether 
he would be saved, or perish. Arriving at Dicaearchia 
the third day, he heard of a violent storm at sea, accompa- 
nied with heavy rain, in which some vessels were lost, and 
others driven to the Sicilian straits. When Damis heard 
this, he understood why Apollonius advised him to make 
his journey on foot. 



BOOK VIII.— Contents. 

Trial of Apollonius before Domitian — Apology, Depar- 
ture from the Tribunal, and sudden Appearance at 
Puteoli after the Trial — Sails into Greece — Goes to 
Olympia — Visits the Cave of Trophonius — Sees at 
Ephesus the Murder of Domitian as it happened at 
Rome — His Letter to Nerva — His Mode of leaving 
this World unknown. 



CHAP. I. 

LET us now approach the tribunal, and hear Apollonius 
make his defence. We are told that from sun-rise the 
people of the higher ranks had access to the court. Some 
persons belonging to the royal household say, that the 
Emperor eat nothing from the preceding day, which must 
have arisen from his thoughts being all taken up with the 
business which was to come before him. It is said he 
perused the indictment which was given him, sometimes in 
great wrath, and sometimes with more composure. I 
think we may represent Domitian to our minds as a man 
highly incensed at the laws for ever having suffered such 
things as tribunals to have been constructed. 



CHAP. II. 

ON this occasion, Apollonius appears more like a man 
taking a part in a mere matter of dispute, than in that of 
pleading a cause in which his life was concerned, and this, 
I think, is manifest from what took place before the trial. 



426 

Whilst on his way, he asked the officer of the court, wh# 
conducted him, where they were taking him? who re- 
plied, to the tribunal. Then, said Apollonius, against 
whom am I to plead ? Against your accuser, returned 
the officer ; and afterwards the Emperor will give sentence. 
But who, said Apollonius, will judge between the Em- 
peror and me ? for I will demonstrate the injury he does 
philosophy. And what cares the Emperor, answered the 
officer, whether he injures philosophy or not? And 
yet, returned Apollonius, it is of infinite consequence to 
philosophy that the Emperor governs with prudence and 
discretion. As this remark met the full approbation of the 
officer, who, from the first, was well-disposed to Apollo- 
nius, he said, What quantity of water will you require for 
your defence, # a circumstance necessary to be known be- 
fore you make it. If, replied Apollonius, the Emperor 
permits me to say as much as the cause requires, all the 
water of the Tiber will not be enough to measure the 
time ; but if only as much as I wish, the interrogant will 
fix the limits of time necessary for the respondent. I see, 
said the officer, you have cultivated very opposite talents, 
in the knowledge you have acquired of speaking either 
briefly, or at length, on the same subject. The talents you 
mean, said Apollonius, are not opposite, but very similar, 
for he who excels in the one, will not be deficient in the 
other ; but there is a talent lying between both, and equally 
partaking of one and the other, which constitutes, not what 
I shall call the third, so much as the first talent, of an ora- 
tion. My fourth talent on a trial, is what I call silence. 
Sure, returned the officer, this is a talent which can be of 
no use, either to you or any other person in a capital in- 



* Here an allusion is made to the Clepsydra, which will be more 
particularly mentioned in a future note. 



427 

formation. And yet, said Apollonius, it was extremely 
useful to Socrates, the Athenian, when he delivered himself 
from the charge brought against him. And pray, answer- 
ed the officer, how did it serve him, inasmuch as he died 
in consequence of his being silent. He did not die, said 
Apollonius, but the Athenians believed it. It was thus 
Apollonius was prepared against every thing which could 
befal him from the tyrant. 



CHAP. III. 

WHILST they were waiting at the door of the tribunal, 
another officer belonging to the same, came up, and said, 
Tyanean, you must enter naked. What, returned Apol- 
lonius, is it to bathe, or to plead my cause I am come 
here ? What I have said, replied the officer, alludes, not 
to your clothes, but to the Emperor's order, forbidding 
your bringing with you either amulet, or book, or charm, 
or any writing whatever. And does he also forbid, con- 
tinued Apollonius, my bringing along with me a rod for 
the back of those who have given him such foolish advice. 
On hearing this, the accuser cried out with a loud voice, 
This conjurer, O Emperor ! threatens me with stripes, as 
being the man who gave you this advice. To which Apol- 
lonius answered, if that is so, you are more of a conjurer 
than I am, for you confess you have persuaded the Em- 
peror to believe I am that which I never could make him 
comprehend that I am not. One of the freed men of 
Euphrates stood by the side of the accuser all the time he 
was uttering these calumnies. This man had been sent by 
Euphrates into Ionia to collect every thing Apollonius said 
whilst there, with orders at the same time to furnish the 
accuser with whatever money he might want. This is what 
may be called the prelude, as it were, to the trial. 



428 



CHAP. IV. 

WHAT passed at the trial is as follows.* The court 
was fitted up as if a panegyric was to be pronounced in 
it. All the illustrious men of the day attended the 
emperor, who was particularly anxious to make it appear 
that the persons accused were concerned in the guilt 
of rebellion. Apollonius treated the Emperor with a 
great degree of supercilious pride, without once deigning 
to look at him. This mark of disrespect was turned to 
the disadvantage of Apollonius by the accuser, who com- 
manded him to look on the Emperor as the God of all 
men.f When Apollonius heard this, he lifted up his 
eyes to the vaulted arch of the court, and by his gesture 
shewed they were turned to Jupiter, and that he looked 
on him who admitted of such gross flattery, viler than 
the flatterer himself. On this the accuser exclaimed,J 
measure out now, O Emperor, the water for him, for 
if this fellow is suffered to speak without some certain 
limits first assigned, he will suffocate us all. I have here 



* This trial, Echard, in his Ecclesiastical History, supposes to have 
taken place in the fourteenth year of Domitian, under the consulship 
of Asprenas and Lateranus, a little before the second general per- 
secution of the church, about twenty five years after the destruction 
of Jerusalem. 

t When Domitian dictated, says Suetonius, the form of a letter 
to be used by bis procurators, he began it thus, * Our Lord and God 
commands so and so" whence it became a custom to style him so, both 
in writing and conversation. 

t The time which judicial speeches were not suffered to ex- 
ceed, was previously fixed, according to the nature of the cause, and 
was regulated by the dropping of water through a glass called 
Clepsydra. 



4«9 

the roll containing the heads of the charge to which 
he must answer, and reply distinctly to each and every one 
of then i. 



CHAP. V. 

THE Emperor commended the accuser for his good 
advice, and ordered Apollonius to plead in the way he 
(his accuser) should prescribe. Hence those articles were 
omitted which did not deserve notice, and four only 
retained, as being esteemed most embarrassing and diffi- 
cult to be answered. The accuser thus began his exami- 
nation. What is the reason, Apollonius, you do not wear 
the same kind of garments other men do, but only such 
as are peculiar, and truly singular ? Because, replied he, 
the earth which supplies me with food, supplies me also 
with raiment, and by wearing garments derived from it, I 
offer no injury to miserable animals. The accuser pro- 
ceeded, Why do men call you a God ? Because, said he, 
every man that is good, is entitled to the appellation.* How 
this doctrine came to form part of his philosophical sys- 
tem, has been already shewn by the conversations he held 
when among the Indians. His third interrogatory turned 
on the plague at Ephesus, and he was asked, whether 
itTwas by an instinctive impulse or mere conjecture he 
predicted it ? By living on a lighter diet than other men, 
O Emperor, I was the first, said he, to foresee its ap- 
proach : and if it now meets your approbation, I will 
enumerate the several causes of pestilential diseases. Do- 
mitian, apprehending lest he might consider among the 



* This is one attestation, says Dr. Enfield, among many others, of 
Apollonius's great celebrity, that during his lifetime," he was called 
a God, and accepted the appellation, 6ayiDg that every good man is 
honored by it. 



430 

causes, his injustice, his incestuous nuptials,* said, it was 
not necessary at present to enter into the detail. On the 
accuser's coming to the fourth interrogatory, relative to the 
suspected persons, he did not at once enter on it with 
ardor, but paused long, like one in deep thought ; and then, 
as if embarrassed, brought it forward in a way which dis- 
appointed all present, who supposed the mask would be 
thrown off, that no mercy would be shewn to any of 
them, and that loud complaints would be made of the 
sacrifice. But the case was the very reverse, for the 
accuser approaching the question, as it were, by little and 
little, said, tell me, Apollonius, on whose, account you 
sacrificed a boy on the day you left your house and went 
into the country ? Apollonius, like one chiding a child, 
said, good words I beseech you : if it can be proved I 
left my house on the day alluded to, I will grant my being 
in the country and offering the sacrifice in question ; and 
if I did offer such a sacrifice, I will allow (what is of all 
things the most atrocious) that I eat of the human flesh on 
the occasion. At the same time that I allow all this, 
I must say, that it will require persons of both credit and 
character to substantiate the fact. On saying this, a shout 
of applause arose, louder than what was suitable to the 
gravity of an imperial tribunal. This note of praise was 
ascribed by the Emperor to the approbation of the spec- 
tators, and being himself affected by the strength and 
ingenuity of his answers, he said, I acquit you of the 
crimes laid to your charge, but here you shall stay till I 
have had some private conversation with you. As this 
mode of acquittal added new strength to the natural cou- 
rage of Apollonius, he replied, I thank you, O King, 
for this ; but on account of the wicked informers by whom 
you are infested, I must tell you, your cities are in ruins, 



* Book vii. c. 7. 



431 

the islands are filled with exiles, the continent with groans, 
the army with fears, and the senate with suspicions. Listen 
to me if you please, if not, send persons to take my body, 
for it is impossible to take my soul : and I will add, not 
even my body, for as Homer says, " not even thy deadly 
spear can slay me, because I am not mortal," in uttering 
these words, he vanished # from the tribunal, taking the 
wisest part, as I think, when all the circumstances of the 
case are considered : for it was notorious that the Emperor 
was insincere, and bore him no good will ; and that had 
he remained, he .would have been interrogated on matters 
very irrelavent, merely from idle curiosity. In the part 
Domitian acted, he thought himself entitled to great credit 
for not having put him to death; and Apollonius, by 
what he did, thought he had secured himself from ever 
falling into the like difficulties. Besides, he judged that 
it would make his peculiar character better known to the 
world, and at the same time shew that there would be no 
possibility of taking him against his will ; and lastly, that 
it would free him from any fears he might have of injuring 
the men in question. For how would it be possible for 



* But the great miracle of all, says Bishop Parker, was his vanish- 
ing away at his trial before Domitian, in the presence of all the great 
men of Rome. But then, though our historian be very desirous 
we should believe it, yet he faulters afterwards, like a guilty liar, in 
his confidence. In the passage before us, he positively affirms, 
T>$a.vi<r6ri — he quite vanished away, and yet in the 8th chapter, which 
follows, he only says aTmxQe— he went away. And this, though he 
would seem to affirm, that it was after a wonderful manner, and no- 
body knows how, is a pitiful abatement to the bigness of his former 
expression, " vanishing away." Though the truth is, if he had stood to 
it, it must unavoidably have proved itself a lie : for it is utterly incre- 
dible, that so strange a thing as that should have been done in so great 
a presence, and yet never any notice be taken of it. Of course it 
certainly was [a gross untruth, and the historian who could be guilty of 
such dbingenuity, deserves little credit as to almost any thing he 
*ays. 



432 
i 

the tyrant to sentence men to death, under any plausible 

colour of law, whose crimes had not been legally proved, 

and concerning whom no inquiry had been instituted. 

This is all that passed at the trial as far as I can find. 



CHAP. VI. 

BUT as a speech was written by Apollonius, which he 
intended to have spoken by the Clepsydra, I shall give it 
to the public, though he did not speak it, in consequence 
of the Emperor having confined him to the four interro- 
gatories before enumerated. I know the speech is not 
relished by persons who approve of no style of speaking 
but what is seasoned with such language as only the licence 
of a buffoon could warrant; they say, also, it is not so 
correct as what it ought to be, and is not sufficiently ele- 
vated either in language or sentiment. But when I take 
into consideration the character of the man as a philoso- 
pher, I think he would not have rightly consulted the re- 
pect due to it, by delivering a speech full of measured 
cadences and antitheses, and words sounding like timbrels, 
a species of oratory fit for rhetoricians, but not for such 
men as Apollonius. For the power of eloquence in 
judicial pleadings, if once it becomes apparent, will make 
the speaker be suspected of a design of imposing on his 
judges : but when concealed, he will come off victorious. 
Eloquence has effect in proportion as its manifest object 
is kept out of sight of him who sits in judgment. A wise 
man, in defending himself, (for he who is wise will never 
bring to trial those whom he can punish himself) will 
pursue a different practice from what they do who pass 
their lives in judical proceedings. The speech of a wise 
man should be laboured without appearing to be so, and 
should possess an elevation of mind that scorned the com- 
mon forms of pleading. He should not suffer persons to 



433 

imagine that he wished to excite compassion, for why 
should he endeavour to do it, who suffers no intercession 
to be made in his favour ? Such, I think, the following 
defence will appear to all who have not been heedless 
listeners either to me or him. Here is the speech just as 
it was composed by him. 



CHAP. VII. 

THE defence intended to have been spoken by Apollo- 
nius before the Emperor Domitian — 1. The cause at pre- 
sent before us, O Emperor, is concerning matters of great 
moment. You run a greater risk than ever Emperor did, 
if you appear, without reason, to be the enemy of philoso- 
phy ; and 1 encounter a greater danger than ever Socrates 
at Athens did, whose accusers affirmed, he supported 
new opinions touching the religion of the state, but they 
did not call him a God, nor did they think him one. As 
the danger hanging over us both is so imminent, I will not 
fear to give you that advice, of which I feel myself per- 
suaded. Since an informer has given rise to the difference 
at present subsisting between you and me, an opinion is 
gone abroad of us, little conformable to the truth. It is 
imagined, that in hearing this cause, you will listen only to 
anger, and consequently, that I shall be put to death with- 
out considering whether a sentence of that nature is right 
or wrong. As to myself, it is believed, I shall withdraw 
from the tribunal by some of the various ways that are 
supposed to be in my power. Though all these things 
have reached my ears, I do not therefore appear with any 
prejudice against you, nor do I think unfavourably of the 
hearing you will give my cause. In obedience to the laws 
I stand before my judge, and I advise him to listen to their 
voice. Justice requires of you neither to condemn me 

2 F 



434 

without a fair hearing, nor to carry to the seat of judgment 
any prejudice whatever, or persuasion of my having com- 
mitted any evil against your person or interest. I know 
you trust in Armenians, and Babylonians, and others bear- 
ing rule in the most distant provinces, who command a 
numerous cavalry, and legions of archers and soldiers, and 
a rich country : and you would laugh, I suppose, if told 
that any one of them could deprive you of your empire; 
and yet you distrust a poor harmless unarmed philosopher, 
as if he had the means of attacking the Emperor of Rome ; 
and listen to the idle talcs of an Egyptian sycophant, of 
whose truth you have received no intimation from Pallas, 
whom you consider as your protectress, and guardian 
Deity. This I do not understand, unless it is that 
calumny and flattery have so prospered with some men, 
as to have given them the power of making you believe, 
that in things of little consequence, as for instance, opthal- 
niies, and fevers, and intestine complaints, the Gods con- 
descend to act as your advisers, and sometimes even as 
your physicians ; but that in matters wherein the interest 
of the state, 'and your own individual security are con- 
cerned, these same Gods neither council you as to the 
persons you should avoid, nor as to the way in which you 
should guard against your enemies. Have they persuaded you 
to think, that calumniators stand in the place of the iEgis 
of Pallas, and the hand of Jove ? Is it possible, I say, 
such men could make you believe, that in what concerns 
your own safety, they know more than what the Gods 
themselves do ; and that their sleeping and waking is all for 
your sake, if ever it can be supposed such men sleep, 
who are heaping woes upon woes, and composing, as the 
proverb says, a succession of Iliads. Let these men then 
have the liberty of keeping white horses, and driving about 
the forum in splendid equipages: let them eat off gold 
and silver, and form alliances by marriages, and maintain 



435 

boys at a monstrous expence, and intrigue with married 
women whilst it can be done in secret; and afterwards 
marry the victims of their adulteries when discovered, 
and be praised for their glorious deeds; whilst a philo- 
sopher, or a man of consular rank, of the best character, 
if he happens to fall into their hands, is unjustly devoted 
by you to destruction at their suggestion. That such 
wretches should be suffered to indulge in this abominable 
style of living, and at the same time be considered as wiser 
than the rest of mankind, and more knowing than the 
Gods, is what I cannot praise, nor reflect on without the 
greatest horror. If such conduct meets your approbation, 
I should not wonder if these men were to accuse you of 
holding heretical opinions concerning the established 
religion ; and I should expect that such an accusation 
should be brought against yourself, whenever these syco- 
phants shall have no one else to accuse. But I find I am 
acting rather as a plaintiff than a defendant ; and therefore 
I hope you will pardon me for having spoken in favour 
of laws, which ought to govern you, if you wish to govern 
others. 

2. But who is to be my advocate ? For if I invoke 
Jupiter, by whom I know I live, I shall be called an en- 
chanter, and said to bring down heaven on earth. That 
being so, let us appeal to a man, whom many suppose 
dead, but I do not ; I mean your father, in whose eyes 
I was held in the same estimation as he is in yours. He 
made you Emperor, but I made him. He shall be my 
advocate in pleading my cause, for he knows my affairs 
better than you do. He came into Egypt before he was 
made Emperor, to offer sacrifice to the Gods of the 
country, and to confer with me on the then critical state 
of the empire. When he met me in my long flowing 
hair, and in the dress I now wear, he made no particular 
inquiries about it, from an idea that every thkig I did was 
2 F 2 



436 

right. He confessed he undertook the journey on my 
account ; he parted with me after much commendation, 
and said he had communicated with no other person, nor 
had heard from any man what he heard from me. I con- 
firmed him in his purpose of aspiring to the diadem, 
though others # made him hesitate, which, 1 think, you 
yourself would consider as unwise; and the men who 
advised him against taking into his hands the reins of 
government, were they who would have deprived you of 
the power of succeeding him. I advised him to think 
himself deserving of the empire, which was, as it were, 
at his door, and to make you his heir. He acknow- 
ledged the wisdom of my advice, which raised him to 
the summit of his wishes, and you likewise. Had he 
deemed me a magician, he would never have made me 
acquainted with his most secret purposes. When he first 
met me, he did not speak of my compelling the Fates, or 
of my affecting a power greater than Jupiter himself, or 
even of my pretending to any thing extraordinary in order 
to shew and prove my character, as for instance, of making 
the sun rise in the west, and set in the east, &c. I should 
not have considered him worthy of the throne, had he 
thought me capable of such a conduct, or of having recourse 
to any other means in seeking it, than those pointed out 
by virtue. Moreover, I discoursed with him publicly in 
the temples of the Gods, which are known to be avoided 
by the corporation of magicians, as being holy, and hostile 
to their craft, who, wrapped up in darkness and obscurity, 
suffer not their foolish votaries to ma*ke use of either their 
eyes or ears. I have talked with him also in private, when 
only Euphrates and Dion were present, of whom the first 
was my greatest enemy, and the latter a friend, tied to me 
by all the bonds of affection : for whilst I live, I shall 



Dion and Euphrates. 



437 

never cease ranking Dion amongst my best friends. Who 
would presume talking of magic before wise men, or men 
pretending to wisdom ? And who is there that is not de- 
sirous of appearing in a good light as well to friends as 
foes ? on the contrary, we have spoken against magicians. 
You will not perhaps believe, that your father trusted 
more to magic, in looking to the empire, than to his 
own virtue ; and that it was at my suggestion alone, he 
ascribed the acquisition of it to the Gods. Vespasian, 
before his coming into Egypt, entertained hopes of gaining 
the empire ; and after his arrival, he talked to me only of 
the most important subjects, namely, the laws, the right 
possession of riches, the lawful worship of the Gods, and 
the advantages, which they who govern according fb jus- 
tice, are to hope from such conduct. To such subjects I 
need not say that magicians are the greatest enemies ; and 
why ? because whenever the laws are in force, the magic 
art is gone. 

3. There is one thing, O Emperor"! you ought to con- 
sider, which is, that all the arts exercised by men, though 
different in their operations, have but one object, which is 
the acquisition of money, of which some bring in little, 
others much, and others only bare necessaries. This is 
not only the object of the servile, but also of the liberal 
arts, and those that have any affinity with them, to the 
exception of philosophy alone. I call the liberal arts, 
poetry, music, astronomy, logic, and oratory, as practis- 
ed in the forum by sophists and rhetoricians. The arts 
allied to the liberal ones, are painting, carving, sculpture, 
pilotage, and agriculture, when under the guidance and 
regulation of the seasons. These are arts which are not 
much inferior to what are called the liberal. There is 
also an art, O EmperorJ that does not appertain to true 
wisdom, and is only becoming the practice of vain quacks 
and mountebanks, which ought not to be confounded 
with the art of divination : an art, if true, most highly to 



438 

be prized ; and yet I am at a loss whether to call it an 
art, or not. Magicians, I affirm, are pseudosophists, 
and I attribute entirely to the heated imaginations of their 
duped votaries, the power they possess of making that 
which is, appear as if it was not ; and that which is not, 
appear as if it was. The truth is, their whole art lies in 
the deluded fancies of the spectators. And yet magic is 
an art, for they who profess it, love money, and all the im- 
positions they practise, is for the sake of vile lucre. They 
amass great wealth by deluding all their votaries, who are 
fond of it, and making them believe they can do every 
thing. But of what wealth have you discovered me pos- 
sessed, O Emperor ! as to make you think I profess a 
pseudophilosophy ? particularly as I am the man whom 
your father found superior to corruption by money. 

To shew you I utter the truth, where is the letter of 
that great, if not rather divine man, wherein he praises 
me for many thiugs, but above all things for my poverty ? 

The Emperor Vespasian's Letter to the Philosopher 
Apollonius, greeting. 

" If all men, Apollonius, as well as you/i would but 
cultivate philosophy, philosophy and poverty would flourish 
and be happy. The former would then be above corrup- 
tion, and the latter respected. Farewel." 

This is the defence your father set up for me, in which 
he ascribed to me a philosophy incorruptible, and a vo- 
luntary poverty. He remembered what happened in 
Egypt, when Euphrates and others, that masked them- 
selves under the cloak of philosophy, came to him, asking 
for money, and that not in silence. As to myself, I never 
paid him court for the sake of money, and ever discou- 
raged those who did, as soon as I discovered them not 
sincere in the cause of philosophy. From my very youth 
I despised riches : the fortune I derived from my fore- 
fathers, which was considerable, appeared to me but as 



4;;9 

the transitory possession of a day, and 1 gave it up to 
my brothers, and friends, and indigent relations, having 
learnt, as it were, from my cradle, the virtue of living on 
a little. I speak nothing here of Babylon, and India on 
the other side Caucasus and the river Hyphasis, countries 
which I traversed always like myself: how I conducted 
myself in them and abstained from money, I appeal 
even to the testimony of the Egyptian himself. With 
respect to the criminal conduct and wicked councils im- 
puted to me, he has not set forth either what I acquir- 
ed by them, or what I proposed to acquire. And does 
he now think me so mad as to turn magician and per- 
petrate crimes for nothing, which are committed by others 
so much to their own advantage ? Is it expected I should 
have a market; with a cryer proclaiming thus, " Come 
hither, all ye blockheads who have lost your senses, I 
practise magic, not for money, but for nothing : you shall 
all and every one of you obtain whatever you wish, and I 
shall have the satisfaction of being exposed to all the dan- 
gers and informations arising from it." 

4. But not to be carried away too far by this foolish 
rhapsody, let me ask of my accuser to what charge I 
must first speak ? And why necessary to interrogate him ? 
for he, in the exordium of his speech, spoke of my dress, 
and of the particular kind of food of which I did, and 
did not, eat. To you, O divine Pythagoras ! I will com- 
mit my defence on these two articles ; for we are sum- 
moned here to give an account of those peculiar precepts 
of which you are the author, and I the follower. The 
earth, O Emperor ! supplies all things necessary for man, 
who, if they would but live in peace with the brute beasts, 
would want for nothing needful to existence. Enough 
may be had from her, by the help of the plough and 
sickle, to support her own children, according to the 
proper seasons. But men, forgetful, as it were, of all her 
favours to them, have unsheathed the sword against her 



440 

animals, for the sake of procuring food and raiment. 
Such a conduct on their part was not approved by the 
Indian Brachmans, who persuaded the Gymnosophists of 
Egypt not to sanction it by their approbation. When 
Pythagoras, the first Greek who ever conversed with the 
Egyptians, understood this, he left the earth its animals, 
and Jived on its genuine productions, from an idea 
of their being clean, and sufficient to support soul and 
body. Garments made from what hath life, and which 
are worn by the bulk of mankind, he held as impure ; 
and on that account he clothed himself in linen, and wore 
shoes, in obedience to the same rule of discipline, made 
out of the bark of trees. From this pure mode of living 
he derived many advantages, and above all, that of knowing 
his own soul, for he knew he lived at the time when Troy 
was besieged on account of the rape of Helen, that he, 
who was the most beautiful of the sons of Panthus, wore 
the finest clothes, was killed in the flower of his age, and 
was lamented by Homer for his untimely fate. After 
migrating through various bodies, agreeable to the Adras- 
tian law, which requires the soul's passage through different 
states, he at length assumed the human form, and was 
born of Mnesarchus the Samian, being changed from a 
barbarian into a sage, and from a Trojan into an Ionian ; 
and rendered so immortal in death, that he never forgot 
he was Euphorbus. I have now given the father of my 
philosophical system, and proved that it is not my inven- 
tion, but that of another, and is come to me as an in- 
heritance. But however that is, I will not condemn 
those who feast on the Phoenicopterus, # or the bird of 



* Phoenicopterus, Red Flamingo, a bird, haviug its wings of a 
crimson colour, whose tongue was a great dainty among the Romans : 
Et Scythicae Volucres et Phoenicopterus ingens. Juvenal. 

Apicius describes the scientific mode of seasoning them. Helioga- 
balus ordered for his table dishes filled with their tongues. 



441 

Phasis,* or the martin of Pannonia,f which is fattened 
up for the banquets of those who indulge in every kind 
of luxury. 1 will pass no sentence against those who buy 
fish at greater price, than what were formerly given by the 
rich for horses branded with the mark Koppa.J I will 
envy no man his wearing purple or Pamphylian garments ;§ 
but I will, O ye Gods ! strive to defend myself from an 
action brought against me for eating asphodels, and fruits, 
and pure food. 

5. My very garments are not safe, for my accuser en- 
deavours to deprive me of them, just as if a particular 
kind of dress was a matter of some moment in the eyes 
of a magician. But if once the doctrine which makes 
the difference between animate and inanimate things be 
done away, in the observance, or neglect of which, one 
may appear pure and another not, wherein will be the ad- 
vantage of wearing a linen habit in preference to one of 
wool ? The wool is shorn from the gentlest of all ani- 



* Pheasants, or the birds of Phasis, were confined, it is said, to 
Colchis, before the expedition of the Argonauts, who, finding these 
beautiful birds scattered on the banks of that river, carried them home 
to Greece. 

t Martin of Pannonia — this is not mentioned in the text, and is only 
collected from an epigram of Martial, which says, 

" Pannonicas nobis nunquam dedit Umbria cattta." 

What animal is understood by cat ta, is not known accurately. 

X This custom of marking horses with some letter is very ancient, 
and is mentioned in the clouds of Aristophanes, Or eirpitfAw to* 
KowTTtfTtttv, &c. — Eustathius says, the Greek letter Cappa is called by 
some Coppa. The custom which we have at this day of marking horses 
on the flank with a red-hot iron is mentioned in Anacreon. 

Ev icrxiott; /uiv ivrirot 
Tlvpot; ytLfayfA tx,e<ri 

§ Pamphylian garments. — Olearius supposes the sheep that pastured 
among the rocks of Pamphylia produced fleeces, from the wool of 
which most expensive garments were made. 



442 

mals, one dear to the Gods* themselves, who have not 
disdained being shepherds. An animal which the Gods, 
or ancient fables, have adorned with gold.f Flax is sown 
without previous preparation, and no fables whatever make 
any allusion to it of gold. But as it is not torn from 
any living creature, the Indians and Egyptians reckon it 
pure, and on that account it is the cause of its supplying 
Pythagoras and me with the garments we wear, whilst en- 
gaged in disputing, praying, and sacrificing. We even 
suppose the mere passing the night under linen contributes 
to a greater purity ; for the dreams of those who live as I 
do, are wont to convey more luminous oracles. 

6. It is necessary also for me to set up a defence on 
account of my hair, which I formerly let grow ; seeing a 
charge of a criminal nature is preferred against me for its 
negligent, undrest appearance. An accusation of this 
kind surely comes not well from the mouth of an Egyptian, 
who would have acted more in character, had he brought 
such a charge against those nice, well-drest beaus with 
golden hair, whose only object is to kindle a flame in the 
hearts of their mistresses, to whom they are so assiduous 
in paying their addresses. The accuser has my full per- 
mission to think them happy in their flowing perfumed 
locks, provided he does not deprive me of the pleasure I 
enjoy in my negligence of attire, and dislike of love. But 
what follows,- is the answer I shall make to his objections. 
I will say, Cease, ye unhappy youths, to disparage by your 
calumnies, an invention of the Dorians. The letting the 
hair grow, is a custom derived from the Lacedemonians, 
who adopted it at the time when their military character 



* Apollo— Pan— -and Mercury. 

t The ram with the golden fleece, the offspring of Neptune and 
Theophane, so celebrated in ancient story. 



443 

was at its highest pitch. Leonidas,* King of Sparta, wore 
his hair long as a mark of courage ; he wore it so to appear 
venerable to his friends,, and formidable to his foes. 
Hence Sparta wore the hair in his time as it did in that of 
Lycurgus and Iphitus. Scissars should never come in con- 
tact with the hair of a wise man. It is a sacrilege to let 
them approach the head, the source and seat of all the 
senses, from whence proceed oracles, and prayers, and 
speech, the interpreter of wisdom. Empedocles-f- marched 
boldly through the most frequented places of Greece with 
his hair tied up in fine purple fillets, reciting hymns, in 
which he announced his change from a man to a God. J 
Yet I, who wear my hair careless and neglected, and never 
composed any hymns in praise of it, am dragged to justice 
before this tribunal. But what shall 1 say of Empedo- 
cles ? Was it the effect of his own happy temper, or that 
of the age in which he lived, that he was never exposed to 
the tongue of calumny on account of it. 

7. However, on the subject of hair I will not say a 
word more : mine has been cut off, and the prejudice 
which preceded this part of my accusation, makes it now 
necessary for me to vindicate myself from another most 
grievous charge, which in itself, O King ! is enough not 
only to terrify you, but even Jupiter himself. My accuser 
says, Men think me a God, and publish this opinion, which 
they found on the various tricks and delusions I practise. 
Now, before an accusation of this kind should be made, 



* Long hair distinguished the free man from the slave, and accord- 
ing to Plutarch, Lycurgus was accustomed to say, that long hair added 
grace to handsome men, and made those who were ugly more terrific. 
The answer brought back by Xerxes's messenger from Thermopylae, 
was, that the Lacedemonians were employed in combing their hair. 

t Diogenes Laertius says, that Empedocles, after restoring peace and 
good government in Agrigentum, clothed himself in purple, and wore 
a golden girdle, as Phavorinus says, and a Delphic crown, and had 
servants attending him. 

$ See b. i. c. 1. 



444 

I think it would be first right to mention the subjects of 
my disputation ; and next, tire wonderful things, either said 
or done, that could have prevailed on men to worship me. 
I never declared to the Greeks either from what body my 
soul has migrated, or into what body it is to migrate, 
though perfectly acquainted with it. I never spread abroad 
such an opinion of myself, nor went about publishing ora- 
cles and predictions in my favour, like other itinerant fana- 
tics. I never knew of any city making proclamation of 
offering sacrifice to Apollonius ; yet I have benefitted as 
many as stood in need of my assistance, and many there 
have been who required it in curing the sick, in promoting 
a stricter observance of religious ceremonies, and in check- 
ing oppression by giving a greater energy to the laws. 
And what has been my reward for all this ? Nothing but 
the reformation thereby effected, wherein I considered 
myself as having rendered to you, O Emperor ! a great 
service. For as graziers serve their employers by keeping 
their cattle always in good condition, and as shepherds 
take care to fatten their sheep for the benefit of their em- 
ployers, and bee-keepers save their hives from distempers 
for the better security of their master's swarms, so did I 
bring your cities under a more regular police by correcting 
in them whatever I found amiss. If then they considered 
me as a God, it is to you the error would have been of 
service ; under this delusion they would have listened more 
willingly to any advice of mine, through the fear of doing 
any thing displeasing to the Gods. But the truth is, they 
never formed any such opinion of me ; they conceived, and 
rightly too, that men had some degree of affinity with a 
deity, in virtue of which, they of all creatures know a 
God, and can reason philosophically of their own nature, 
and how far it is participant of the divine. Our form 
speaks its likeness to a God, as appears* from the arts of 

* Statuaries and painters always represent the Gods with human 
countenances. 



445 

statuary and painting. The virtues are supposed to de- 
scend from the Gods, in consequence of which, they who 
are endowed with them, most resemble them. I will not 
call the Athenians the authors of this sentiment on account 
of their being the first who gave men the titles of Just, 
and Olympian.* and otherf* like appellations, which seem 
to include something more divine than what is befitting 
mortals ; but 1 will call the Pythian Apollo himself the 
author of it, as appears from what I am going to mention. 
Lycurgus of Sparta visited the temple of Apollo after 
delivering to his countrymen that code of laws and statutes 
on which their city was founded. The God J addressed 
him on his entrance, and it is said, seemed to deliberate, as 
it were, with himself what judgment he should form of him, 
in giving his answer ; at first he was in doubt whether to 
call him a God or a man, and at last decreed him the style 
and title of a God, as being a man of virtue. No process 
of any kind was issued against Lycurgus for this, nor did 
he incur any danger with the Lacedemonians, either for 
having aspired to immortality, or for having not corrected 
the Pythian God for his mode of salutation. The answer 
returned by the oracle gained universal assent, from a full 
conviction that Lycurgus merited the appellation before it 
was delivered. This doctrine is that of the Indians and 
Egyptians. The latter blame the Indians in some things, 
and call in question certain of their precepts touching mo- 
rality ; but the doctrine which the philosophers of the East 



* Aristides and Pericles, the former obtained the appellation of the 
just on account of his integrity — and the latter that of the Olympian, 
on account of his commanding eloquence- 
t Olcarius says, Cleon was surnamed Pythius. 
$ Herodotus has preserved the answer of the oracle. — 
" Thou com'st, Lycurgus, to this honour'd shrine, 
" Favour'd by Jove, and ev'ry pow'r divine. 
" Or God, or mortal : how shall 1 decide ; 
" Doubtless to beaten, most dear, and most allied." 



446 

hold of the Demiurgns,* or maker of all things, is so ap- 
proved of by the Egyptians, that they instruct others in its 
tenets, notwithstanding it is of Indian origin. This doc- 
trine acknowledges God to be the author of nature and of 
all existence ; and makes his goodness the efficient cause of 
all things. If, then, goodness is so intimately connected 
with the Divinity, I cannot avoid considering myself found- 
ed irfthe opinion of good men partaking of the Divine 
nature. JBy the world, which depends on God as its great 
Demiurgus, we understand all things in heaven, and in earth, 
and in the sea, of which all men equally partake, though their 
several conditions as to fortune may be very different. But 
there is a world in every good man's power, the regulation 
of which does not exceed the limits of human wisdom, 
which you will allow, O Emperor i requires a man like 
unto a God to govern. What is the appearance of this 
world? Souls in a state of corruption assume various 
forms in despite of reason. Laws to them seem obsolete, 
moderation lost, the worship of the Gods neglected, idle- 
talking in fashion, and dissipation, from whence flows indo- 
lence, the very worst counsellor in all things. Souls of 
this description, besotted, as it were, by intemperance, 
plunge inconsiderately into a variety of excess, and nothing 
is able to restrain their wild irregularity : not if they were 
to swallow all those potions, which, like mandragora,f 



* From all the properties of man and of nature, from all the various 
branches of science, from all the deductions of human reason, the gene- 
ral corollary, admitted by Hindus, Arabs, and Tartars, by Persians, 
and by Chinese, is the supremacy of an all-creating and all-preserving 
spirit, infinitely wise, good, and powerful, but infinitely removed from 
the comprehension of his most exalted creatures. Sir W. Jones on the 
Philosophy of the Asiatics. 

t Not poppy, nor mandragora, 

Nor all the drowsy syrups of the world, 

Shall ever medicine thee to that sweet sleep, 

Which thou owedst yesterday. Othello. 



447 

are medicined for sleep. The man who is to take the care 
of regulating a world of such souls as these, should resem- 
ble a God* deputed by Divine wisdom. He alone is 
capable of recalling them from love, to which they are 
carried by more than usual bias ; and from avarice, which 
is never satisfied with riches .till choaked by them. Such 
a man may, perhaps, not find it impossible to keep them 
from the pollution of murder, butf to purge them for 
murder committed, is neither possible for me, nor for that 
Go.d who is the maker of all things. 

8. Now as to the charge of my having restored health 
to Ephesus, let my accuser bring it forward in the way 
most fitting his purpose : let him, if he pleases, urge it 
in the following manner, The Scythians and Celtae, who 
dwell not far from the banks of the Danube and Rhine, 
have a town belonging to them, not much inferior to 
Ephesus in Ionia. This town is the bulwark to the bar- 
barians, your enemies. A plague was on the point of 
destroying it, and Apollonius saved it. In a case like this, 
a wise man would not be without his answer, if the Em- 
peror wished to destroy his enemies by force of arms, and 
not by force of disease. But God forbid, O Emperor ! 
that any city should be utterly destroyed either by you or 
me ; and as to myself, I would not like to see diseases 
in the temples, J to where the sick repair for the sake of 
health. But granting it was not necessary to assist the 
barbarians in their distress, or to restore them to health 
when sick, on account of being the great and implacable 
enemies of our nation ; who, I say, will presume to say 



* ©so? am c-oyia;, seems to allude, io the opinion of Olearius, to the 
well-known phrase of Geo? arro fA.nna.nq— the introduction of a God 
on the stage. 

" Nee Deus intersit, nisi dignus vindice nodus 
" Incident." Horace. 

t Airon-^at. — By tliose who spoke accurately, to wash the hands 
before supper, was termed vi^as-Bmi— to wash after supper tmm+tu-Bai. 
$ Temples of Esculapius. 



448 

it was not right to deliver Ephesus from the plague ? 
Ephesus that derives its origin from the purest Attic* 
source, that has 'grown in rank above all the cities in 
Ionia or Lydia, and has stretched even to the sea by 
means of the neck of land on which it is built. A city 
rich in the literary labours of its philosophers and rheto- 
ricians, insomuch, that it flourishes not so considerably 
by the strength of its cavalry, as by the number of its 
citizens devoted to science. Do you thiuk there is any- 
wise man who would not take much pains to save a city 
like this ? particularly if he called to mind Democritusf 
who delivered the people of* Abdera from a plague ; and 
Sophocles the Athenian, who appeased the windsj when 
blowing louder than usual; or if he recollected Empe- 
docles' § checking the fury of a cloud when ready to burst 
over Agrigentum. 

9« But I see the accuser looking at me ; you see it 
also, O Emperor ! he says I am accused, not for having 



* Founded by Androclus, son of Cedrus, king of Athens, 
t This account of Democritus's delivering the Abderites from a 
plague, is not mentioned by Laertius — he says, however, that he was 
honored as a God by them on account of his predictions. Olearius 
refers us to the observations of Menage on the Lives of Laertius, for 
the confirmation of this delivery from the plague. 

$ To this Mr. Gerard Hamilton alludes in his Ode to Sleep — Printed 
for Mr. Payne. 1808. 

With longing taste, with eager lip, 

In raptured visions oft I sip 

The honeys of the tragic bee ;** 

Whose strains could every tempest quell, 

Could every noxious blast dispel, 

And still the hollow roaring of the sea, &c. 
§ Laertius relates, that when the Etesian winds were very violent 
at Agrigentum, so as to destroy the fruits of the earth, Empedocles 
ordered some asses to be flayed, and that having made bottles of 
their skins, they were placed at the tops of the hills for stopping the 
winds. What can be thought of a speech illustrated by so silly an 
allusion. 

** Sophocles. 



449 

delivered the Ephesians from a plague, but for having 
foretold that it would attack them. This foreknowledge 
he thinks is more than human, and partakes of the mar- 
vellous : and he is of opinion I could never have arrived 
at its discovery without being either a magician or one of 
the wicked. What will Socrates say here, to defend what 
he said he had from his Demon ? What will Thales and 
Anaxagoras say, of whom the one predicted a great 
plenty of olives,* and the other,f a variety of celestial 
phenomena ? Was it the magic art they made use of to 
utter these predictions ? They were brought before tri- 
bunals for very different reasons, and amongst all the ar- 
ticles alledged against them, it was never once insinuated 
they were magicians for having foretold what was to hap- 
pen. A charge of this nature would have appeared ridi- 
culous, and one which it was not probable would have 
been brought against wise men in Thessaly, where old 
women are under the evil report of drawing down the 
moonj from heaven. You will ask, perhaps, how have I 
foreseen the extraordinary phenomenon which happened 
at Ephesus ? You heard my accuser speak to that point, 
he said himself, I did not live after the manner of other 
men, which was noticed by me in the exordium of my 
speech, when I allowed I used a particular kind of food 
that was most frugal, and more agreeable to me than the 
nicest delicacies of Sybaris. This is the kind of living 
which acts in the place of an occult cause, and keeps my 
senses unimpaired, without suffering any thing to obscure 



* Thales predicted aplenty of olives, antequamjlorerecccpissent, says 
Cicero. 

t For the predictions of Anaxagoras, see b. i. c. 2. 

X Carmina vel coelo possunt deducere lunani. Virgil. 

The Thessalians were thought to be possessed of this art, more thau 
any other people. 

The sorceress in Theocritus frequently calls on the moon to tell her 
whence her passion came. 

2 G 



450 

them ; this, in fine, is the cause of my seeing, as it were, 
in the speculum of a mirror, all that is, and is to be. A 
wise man will not wait till the earth sends forth vapor, or 
the atmosphere is infected, if evil comes from above ; but 
he will perceive such things are at hand, not so soon 
as the Gods, yet sooner than the generality of men. 
The Gods see what is to come, men what is come, and 
wise men what is coming. As to what respects the causes 
of the plague, inquire of me, O Emperor ! in private, 
for they are too deep to be divulged. The way in which 
I live is the only thing which gives that sub til ty to the 
senses, or more properly speaking, that energy which is 
fit for producing great and wonderful effects. The truth 
of what I say may be collected from many things, but 
particularly from what occurred at Ephesus, during the 
time of the plague. The form the malady assumed, was 
that of an old beggar-man. # I saw him, and as soon as 
I saw him, I apprehended him : not abating the distemper, 
but extirpating it. The statue erected by me at Ephesus 
to Hercules Averruncus, is a proof whose assistance I 
implored on the occasion. To him I offered up my 
prayers, whose wisdom and courage of old delivered Elis 
from a plague, at the time he turned the course of a river 
into that province, which swept away all its pestilential 
vapors, in the reign of King Augeas. Will any man, O 
Emperor ! who wishes to pass for a magician, ascribe to 
a God what he has performed himself? Will any man 
admire his craft, if he gives to a God the merit of all that 
is marvellous? or did you ever hear of a magician calling 
on Hercules for assistance ? Such things magicians ascribe 



* Had Apollonius been suffered to make this defence, what must 
Domitian and the court have thought of his representing the pslague as 
an old beggar-man. 

Si dicentis erunt fortuuis absona dicta, 

Romani tollent equites peditesque cachinnum. Horace. 



4M 

to the digging of trenches and the infernal Gods, with 
whom Hercules has no place on account of the purity of 
his life, and his benevolence to men. Corinth was once 
infested with the appearance of a Lamia, who supported 
herself by devouring beautiful boys. In combating with 
her, Hercules lent me his assistance, and what did he 
ask as a reward for this service? only a few cakes 
made of honey, a little frankincense, and the pleasure 
of doing good to mortals. This is the recompense he 
looked to, for all the labors which he accomplished 
by the orders of Eurystheus. Take it not ill, O Em- 
peror ! that I speak to you of the labours of Her- 
cules : he was under the immediate protection of 
Minerva, because he was good and useful to man- 
kind. 

10. But seeing you wish me to speak on the subject 
of the sacrifice, which I suppose is signified by the motion 
of your hand, listen to what is the ingenuous truth. 
Though anxious to do all I can for the good of mortals, I 
never sacrificed for them, nor mean to do it. I wish 
to have nothing to do with sacrifices where blood is shed, 
or to offer up my vows with the sacrificing knife in view, 
or with any thing -which you call a sacrifice. I am no 
Scythian, O Emperor! nor one sprung from an inhos- 
pitable soil. Far from adopting the religious ceremonies 
of the Massagetae or Tauri, I have caused them to cease 
from their usual bloody sacrifices, and blamed their folly 
in many discourses had with them on the subject of divi- 
nation, and in what it may be considered as efficient, and 
in what not. Can I, therefore, (who know better than 
any other, that the Gods declare their will to men who 
are wise and pure, though they do not aim at the gift of 
divination) stain my hands in blood, and touch the entrails 
of victims, the bare mention of which is forbidden, and 
excites horror : and by such a defilement thereby forfeit 
the gift of divination ? But setting aside the horror I feel 
2 g 2 



452 

at such sacrifices, I think, if my accuser was desired to 
reflect on what he has said, he will acquit me himself. He 
has said I foretold the plague at Ephesus, without having 
recourse to any sacrifice, and if he did say so, why does 
he suppose it necessary for me now to offer bloody sacri- 
fices to foretel what might have been foretold without 
them ? Or why suppose I stood in want of the gift of 
divination, concerning events of which I and others were 
fully persuaded. If I am called on to answer for Nerva 
and his friends, I shall only repeat what I said before, 
when accused by you. I look on Nerva as fit for the dis- 
charge of any office, and worthy of all praise; but ill 
calculated for the execution of any enterprise. His body is 
enfeebled with disease, which has so affected his mind, 
as to leave him scarcely equal to the management of his 
domestic concerns. He* commends the vigor of your body 
and mind, wherein he is right, for men are ever prone to 
praise in others what they are incapable of doing themselves., 
In his intercourse with me, his modesty is remarkable, for I 
never saw him laugh or indulge in a jest in my company, as 
he is accustomed to do in that of his friends, but like boys 
in the presence of their parents or preceptors, he utters, 
with a kind of blushing timidity, whatever he has to say.f 
Sensible of the value I set upon modesty, he is so particular 
in making a show of it before me, as to appear more 



* Domitian's person was graceful, aud in his youth was completely 
such, excepting only that his toes were bent somewhat inward. 

Suetonius. 

t Nerva is commended by all the ancients, as a prince of a most 
sweet and humane temper, and one who looked upon himself as 
raised to the empire, not for his own advantage, but for that of his 
people. He seems to have been naturally timorous. Apollonius was 
the first, if Philostratus is to be credited, who solicited him to assume 
the sovereignty, or at least to deliver Rome from the tyranny of 
Domitian. 






453 

humble than what he ought, or is becoming. Who* can 
think that Nerva would aim at sovereign power, who is 
well content with the government of his own family ? Or 
that he should confer with me on subjects of the greatest 
moment, who has not courage to talk to me on the most 
trifling ? or communicate matters to ine, which he ought 
not to breathe to any mortal living, if he took my advice ? 
or how could I ever expect to pass for a wise man, if I 
was to rest my credit on the art of divination, without 
once listening to the dictates of prudence ? Orfitus and 
Rufus are men of integrity and moderation, and peaceable, 
as far as I know them. When it is said they are suspected 
of aspiring to the empire, I know not whether the mistake 
is not as great with respect to them, as it is with respect to 
Nerva, or if it is more probable, Nerva wishes to mount 
the throne under the direction and guidance of such ad- 
visers, or that these advisers have inspired him with such an 
idea. 

1 1 . But he who summoned me to trial, should have 
considered how, or in what way I could have given assist- 
ance to innovators in the empire. My prosecutor does 
not say I have received money from them, or have been 
bribed to join their party. But it may be said I had 
great claims on them, and on that account put off the day 
of retribution to that in which it might be supposed they 
would be masters of the government, when I might have 
demanded much, and obtained more. But how can this 
be proved ? Call to mind, O Emperor ! yourself and your 
predecessors, I mean your brotherf and your father, j and 
likewise Nero, whilst they governed the empire. Under 



* The evasive mode of reasoning adopted here by Apollonius, is 
not perfectly suitable to the openness and candour of a great phi- 
losopher. 

t Titus. 

t Vespasian. 



454 

them I lived in some degree of celebrity, even before my 
journey to India. During the space of eight and thirty 
years,* which is the time elapsed since, I never frequented 
the doors of Emperors, (save those of your father in 
Egypt, but he was not as yet Emperor, and he confessed 
it was on my account he came) nor ever condescended to 
any thing humiliating in complimenting Kings, or even 
people for the sake of Kings. I never boasted of the 
letters written me by Kings, nor of those I wrote to them ; 
nor did I ever once deviate from the respect due to myself, 
by a mean flattery of Kings for what they had to bestow. If 
you ask me,, after due consideration had of the condition of 
poor and rich, amongst whom I enrol myself, I will say 
amongst the very rich. For I consider the virtue of wanting 
nothing equal to the possession of the riches of Lydia and 
Pactolus. How could I expect that men not in possession 
of power, should make presents to me when they were, who 
never accepted any thing from you, or those who were in 
full enjoyment of it ? or how could any body suppose I 
should have been dreaming of changes in government to enrich 
myself, who never once made use of the people in power 
to do it ? And yet what may be acquired by a philosopher 
paying his court to the great, is evident from the history 
of Euphrates. From what, I pray you, does he draw 
his wealth ? There are springs from whence his wealth 
flows ; at this time he holds his philosophical disputations at 
the tables of the money-changers, where he appears in the 
several characters of a merchant, a retailer, a publican, 
and an usurer, in short, where he appears all things to 
all, a seller, and yet to be sold. He is more nailed to 
the doors of the great, and spends more time in dangling 



* We have so few documents to ascertain the different eras in the 
life of Apollonius, that I think it useless to enter into the discussion, 
particularly as both the year of his birth, and that of his death, are 
squally unknown. 



455 

after them, than their porters. He is often found shut up 
in their houses like one of their hungry dogs. No philoso- 
pher ever contrives to get a farthing from him ; he hoards 
up his riches, and with what he can extort, and squeeze 
from others, he feeds this Egyptian, and sharpens a tongue 
against me, which if it had its desert, ought to be cut out 
of his head. 

12. But to you, O Emperor! I resign Euphrates; if you 
are not very much enamoured of flatterers, you will find 
him worse than I have described him. Listen, I pray 
thee, to what remains of my defence. And what is it, 
and upon what subject? My accuser has told you a 
melancholy tale of my cutting an Arcadian boy in pieces, 
and though he has told you, I know not yet whether he 
says it happened by night or in a dream. This boy, he 
adds, was of a good family, and as handsome as Arca- 
dians generally are, whose good looks are not affected by 
the meanness of their attire. This youth I am accused of 
killing whilst in the act of supplicating me with tears, and 
at the time, when my hands were stained with his blood, of 
having implored the Gods to reveal the truth of what was 
to come to pass. Thus far the accusation comes home 
to myself; what follows concerns the Gods, for it is 
added, they heard my prayers, displayed favourable signs 
in the entrails, and put not to death the impious sacrificer. 
Why is it necessary for me, O Emperor ! to speak of that 
which cannot be heard without a crime? As to what 
respects this part of my defence concerning the Arcadian, 
let us inquire who he is ? For if he was not of an ob- 
scure family, and of no inelegant appearance, surely it is 
time to ask the name of his parents and family ; and in 
what town of Arcadia he was educated, and from what 
penates he was dragged here to be sacrificed ? For not- 
withstanding my accuser's ingenuity in the art of lying, he 
has no evidence on which to found these things. Granted 
— let us then suppose the boy a slave, for whom this up- 



456 

roar is made, for what else can he be who has no name, 
nor parentage, nor city, nor inheritance. And if all this 
is so, we may fairly ask who sold him ? and who was the 
purchaser ? for if an Arcadian's entrails are the fittest for 
illustrating the power of divination, it is probable the boy 
must have cost much, and that a special messenger was 
dispatched to Peloponnesus to bring him to Rome. Here 
there is no difficulty in buying Pontic, or Lydian, or 
Phrygian slaves, of whom you may sometimes meet 
whole droves on their way to Rome. The countries from 
whence these slaves come, and the other barbarous ones 
who have always been under the rule of foreign masters, 
do not consider slavery as disgraceful. Nothing is com- 
moner in Phrygia than parents selling their children, and 
if once made slaves, never thinking of their ransom. But 
the Greeks are still fond of liberty, and not one of them 
will sell a slave to be carried out of the country. Hence 
it is that Greece is not visited either by slave-stealers, or 
slave merchants ; but of all parts of it, Arcadia is the least 
subject to this traffic, both on account of its inhabitants 
loving liberty better than the other Greeks, and of their 
requiring a greater number of slaves for their own use. 
Arcadia is a country spacious, abounding in plants and 
herbs, with lands, of which some are open and flat, and 
some mountainous. The cultivation and management of 
these grounds require many hands to till them, together 
with many persons to take care of their goats, and swine, 
and sheep, and oxen, and horses. It requires also many 
wood-cutters, and in this kind of labour, the inhabitants 
are employed from their youth. But supposing the Ar- 
cadians not such as here described, and suppose they sold 
their slaves, like other people, what advantage could this 
famous art derive from its having an Arcadian sacrifice 
made in preference to any other ? The Arcadians do not 
so much exceed the other Greeks in wisdom, as to make 
us perceive any thing in their entrails different from what 



457 

is to be seen in those of others. They are the simplest of 
all people in their manuers, and in some circumstances, as 
well as in that of eating acorns, resemble their swine. In 
painting the manners of the Arcadians, and digressing 
into Peloponnesus, I have, I fear, pleaded my cause more 
after the manner of a rhetorician than what I ought. 
What then is the defence I should have made, as most 
becoming my character ? It is the following : — u I have 
shed no blood in sacrificing ; I shed no blood, I touch no 
blood, nor any altar sprinkled with it." This is what 
Pythagoras and his disciples, the Gymnosophists in Egypt, 
and the wise men in India, have commanded and ordained. 
They who perform their religious duty pursuant to their 
institutions, do nothing displeasing to the Gods; they 
grow old by the means of moderate indulgence, and keep 
their bodies and minds in sound health, and free from 
disease. They encrease in wisdom, are less dependant 
than others, and want for nothing. I think it not absurd 
to pray to the Gods, who are good, by making them pure 
offerings, and I think the Gods themselves have been of 
the same opinion, as appears from their having placed the 
frankincense-bearing country # in the purest region of the 
world, from whence men might get wherewithal to offer 
to them, without being obliged to fly to the sacrificing 
knife, and the shedding of blood. And yet it is supposed, 
that I, without any respect had for the Gods and myself, 
have sacrificed in a way not familiar to me, and in which 
I wish not to be followed by any mortal. 

13. But the time marked by my accuser, will acquit 
me. For if the day on which he says I committed the 
crime, I was in the country, I will confess having offered 
the sacrifice ; and if I do that, I will not deny the having 



* Arabia thurifira, called also, odorifira y dives and beatq. 



458 

shared in eating it. And yet you, O Emperor ! continue 
to repeat the question, whether I was not at that time in 
Rome? a thing not denied. You were there likewise, 
most excellent Prince, and I am sure, will not allow of 
having offered such a sacrifice. My accuser himself was 
also there, and will never own to the having committed 
murder. Multitudes of other people were there as 
well as we, whom you would treat with more lenity by 
sending at once into banishment, than by exposing them 
to accusations, in which their being at Rome might be 
brought forward as an argument of their guilt. On the 
other hand, I think the very circumstance of a man's 
coming to Rome, is a proof of innocence, and of his not 
being concerned in rebellion. For unless a man had an 
inclination to leave this world, he would never meddle 
with innovation in a city, where all eyes and ears are 
open to see and hear, both what is done, and what is 
not ; and where all moderate and prudent men learn to 
walk heedful, in the most plain and direct paths. 

14. What then, O accuser! did I do that night? if 
you were to question me as if I was yourself, since you 
are come to interrogatives, I would tell you, I was laying 
indictments against the worthy, and snares for the ruin of 
the innocent, and instilling lies into the mind of the Em- 
peror, for the purpose of honouring myself, and disho- 
nouring him. If you were to ask me as a philosopher what 
I was doing, I would say, I was commending the laughter 
of Democritus which he used in deriding all human things. 
But if you were to ask myself what I was doing — here is 
my answer, Philiscus of Melos who studied philosophy 
with me for four years, was then very sick in his bed, 
and on that night I sat by him till he died. Then it 
was that I wished to possess such magic charms as could 
have saved his life, and to know if Orpheus had any verses 
by which the dead are restored to this world. Had it 



459 

been permitted, I should have gone to the infernal regions 
on his account, so endeared was he to me, both as a friend 
of congenial sentiments, and a philosopher of my way of 
thinking. Of the truth of what I say, O Emperor! Teli- 
sinus, the consul, will inform you, who passed the same 
night I did with Philiscus in the most friendly attentions. 
And if any doubt is entertained of his testimony, from 
being numbered with the philosophers, I appeal to that of 
the physicians who attended him, Seleucus of Cyzicus, 
and Stratocles of Sidon, from whom you may learn 
whether what I say is true or not. Besides, Philiscus him- 
self had above thirty disciples who can all testify the same. 
I would wish to call in the relations of Philiscus, but if I 
expressed this wish, you might think I was inclined to put 
off judgment, as they have all left Rome, for Melos, to 
pay the last sad duties to the deceased. Come into court, 
ye other witnesses who are cited, and are permitted to 
appear. (Here follows, it may be supposed, the depositions 
of such witnesses as were examined). The depositions you 
have just heard, prove clearly how very consistent with 
truth the libel was laid, for it appears from them I was 
not in the suburbs, but in the city ; not outside the walls, 
but within them; not with Nerva, but with Philiscus; 
not offering bloody sacrifices, but prayers for the recovery 
of my friend's health ; not occupied in the business of the 
state, but in that of philosophy ; not planning insurrection 
against you, but intent on saving the life of a man like 
myself. 

15. What then becomes of the story of the Arcadian 
boy? what of the story of the victims, and the credit 
which has been given them ? For supposing what is 
false to be adduced in a court of justice, instead of that 
which is true; in what way, I pray thee, O Emperor! 
should the absurdity of such a sacrifice be treated ? In 
old times there were soothsayers, whose business was to 
inspect the exta of beasts ; men versed in the art, and of 



460 

great celebrity, of whom Megistias, # the Acarnaniait? 
Aristander f the Lycian, and Silanus J the Ambracian, 
were the chief. The first was soothsayer to Leonidas, 
the King of Sparta ; the second to Alexander of Macedon; 
and Silanus, the third, to Cyrus, at the time he was as- 
piring to the throne of his brother. If any thing had been 
discovered by these men in the exta of human victims, 
more luminous, more profound, or more explicit than in 
those of others, they would have had neither scruples 
nor difficulty in procuring them ; for the Kings by whom 
they were employed had plenty of cupbearers and slaves 
at their disposal ; and they were men themselves of such 
character as would not have declined making use of human 
victims, through any fears either of danger or prosecution. 
But 1 take for granted the same sentiments occurred to 
them, as do to me, who stand here arraigned for my life 
for similar offences ; they thought that probably the exta 
of animals that lose their lives without having any pre- 
science of death, or sense of what they are about to suffer, 
undergo no change whatever. But who will believe that 
a man who has ever some fear of death, though not im- 
mediate, can, whilst the apprehension of death is present, 
and as it were before his eyes, give any intimation of 
futurity by his exta, and be a proper subject for a sacri- 
fice ? To be convinced that my conjectures are right, and 
consonant to the truth, I think, O Emperor ! you should 
consider the matter in the following light. The liver, 
which the most skilful soothsayers affirm to be the 
tripod of divination, consists not of pure blood, for it is 



* Megistias, a soothsayer, who told the Spartans that defended 
Thermopylae, that they should all perish. Herodotus. 

t Aristander, a celebrated soothsayer, greatly esteemed by Alexan- 
der. It is said Alexander relied much on his veracity. Pun*. 

t Silanus, an augur in the army of the ten thousand Greeks, at their 
return from Cynaxa. See Xenophon's Anabasis, 



461 

the heart which retains and circulates, by the veins, the 
pure blood through the whole body. The gall which is 
contained in the liver, is put into motion by anger, and is 
confined by fear within the cavities of the liver. So that 
the gall, whenever it becomes to effervesce in men of 
warm passions, and is not able to be kept within its own 
proper vessels, diffuses into the liver, by which it occupies 
the whole left region of the entrails, wherein is seated the 
foundation of the art of divination. When a man is under 
the influence of fear, his liver contracts and darkens the 
light in the left region. For then the purer part of the 
blood withdrawing itself, by means of which the liver is 
distended like the spleen, and sinking by a natural motion 
into the membrane inclosing the heart, swims upon the 
gross matter. Whence then, O Emperor ! the necessity 
of human sacrifices, if they give no signs of futurity to be 
depended on ? But man's own nature is the true cause of 
its not giving such signs, he himself being under the fear 
of death. Brave men die with anger, cowards with fear. 
Hence this art of divination, with people not wholly savage, 
approves of the sacrificing of kids and lambs, because of 
their being harmless, and not differing from creatures 
entirely devoid of sense. But cocks, and swine, and bulls, 
as being of a more generous nature, it considers unfit 
to be used in their secret rites. I see, O Emperor ! that 
my adversary is not pleased with my making you a more 
enlightened hearer than himself, nor with the attention 
you seem to pay to my defence. If in any point I have 
explained myself in a way not so satisfactory as what I 
ought, I beg you may interrogate me respecting it. 

16. I have said what was necessary as an answer to the 
libel of the Egyptian. But since the calumnies of Eu- 
phrates are not to be passed over in silence, you will judge, 
O Emperor ! which of us two philosophizes best. His 
object is to say every thing false of me, and mine not to 
follow his example. He fears you, as a slave fears his 
master, and I respect you as a subject should his sovereign. 



462 

He puts a sword into your hand against me, but I do not 
arm you against him. He makes my conversations in Ionia 
the grounds of his charge against me, which he says were 
uttered with an evil mind ? and yet all I said there regard- 
ed nothing but fate and necessity. To illustrate my dis- 
course by examples, I sought in the history of princes for 
such as were appropriate, because, in human affairs, your 
rank, O Emperor ! is most conspicuous. I reasoned on 
the force of fate, and said, its decrees are so unchangeable, 
that if they decreed a kingdom to one man, which, at the 
time of making the decree was possessed by another, and 
that, if the reigning prince was even to put to death his 
appointed successor to prevent his succeeding to the throne, 
I said the dead man would return to life to satisfy the de- 
crees of fate. Men, you know, are sometimes accustom- 
ed to talk in figures and hyperboles to those who will not 
believe them when they talk in reason and moderation. 
It is as if I was to speak in the following language, He 
whom the Fates destine to be a carpenter, will be one 
though his hands were cut off. He whom they appoint 
to win at the Olympic Games, will win even if his legs 
were broken : and he whom they have decreed to hit his 
mark, will do it though his eyes were put out. My ex- 
amples which I adduced, were taken from the history of 
Kings, and those I had in view, were Acrisius, # Laius,f 
and Astyages the Mede, and many others who thought they 
had taken the best precautions to secure themselves in their 
kingdoms. Of these princes, some by putting to death their 
sons, and others their grandsons, thought to give them- 
selves security ; and yet they were all bereft of their 
kingdoms by those- sons and grandsons, who rose out of 
darkness by the predominant power of fate. If I was in- 
clined to flatter, O Emperor ! I would say that your situa- 



* Acrisius, the father of Daniie, whose story is well known, 
t Laius, the father of (Edipus, and Astyages, the grandfather of 
Cyrus, whose stories are equally well known. 



463 

tion* occurred strongly to me when you were besieged in 
this city by Vitellius, and the temple of Jupiter Capitoli- 
nus was burnt. Vitellius supposed every thing would go 
well with him, could he have prevented your escape from 
the capitol, though at that time you were young, and far 
from what you are at present. But as the Fates decreed 
otherwise, he perished in the midst of his projects, and 
you now possess his throne. However, as the song of 
flattery is unpleasing to my ears, from its want of due ca- 
dence and melody, I must break its string. Do not be- 
lieve my thoughts have been engrossed by your affairs ; I 
have spoken only of the Fates and Necessity, which is what 
my accuser has alledged against me. As to the doctrine 
of Necessity, most of the Gods themselves do not object 
to it, and even Jupiter is not displeased at hearing it men- 
tioned by the poets, who, when speaking of the affairs of 
Lycia, make him say, 

" The hour draws oo, the destinies ordain, 

" My godlike son shall press the Phrygian plain." 

Nor is he angry with the Fates, when they deprive him of 
that son. And in other places, the poets, when speaking 
of the abode of departed spirits, tell us that Jupiter ap- 
pointed Minos,f Sarpedon's brother, whom he could not 



* Domitian on the first eruption of the besiegers, was conveyed to 
the apartments of the warden of the temple, and there protected till 
one of his freedmen had the address to conduct him to a place called 
the Velabrum, where he lodged him safe, under the care of a man 
firmly attached to Vespasian. Tacitus, Hist. iii. c. 74. 

f High on a throne, tremendous to behold, 
** Stern Minos waves a mace of buruish'd gold ; 
Around ten thousand thousand spectres stand 
Thro' the wide dome of Dis, a trembling band. 
Still as they plead, the fatal lots he rolls, 
Absolves the just, and dooms the guilty souls. 

Odyssey, b. xi. 1. 567. Pope. 



464 

exempt from the laws of destiny, judge in the court of 
Pluto, and honored him with a golden sceptre. Why 
then, O Emperor ! are you displeased with this doctrine ? 
a doctriue tolerated by the Gods themselves, whose con- 
dition is unchangeable, and who punish not with death the 
poets on account of it. We must obey the destinies, we 
must not repine at the changes and chances of this life, 
and must give credit to Sophocles, who says, " The 
Gods alone are exempt from old age and death," and, 
" Time in the end is victorious over all things," and in 
this, he expresses himself better than was ever done by 
mortal. The fortune of men is variable, and their hap- 
piness only endureth for that of a day. # Neither he who 
has my estate, nor the man who has the estate of him who 
possesses mine, can be considered as the real possessors. 
Taking this into consideration, put a stop, O Emperor ! 
I beseech you, to all banishments and shedding of blood. 
Use philosophy in every thing you like, for true philosophy 
frees the mind from trouble. Wipe the tears from the 
eyes of men, whose multiplied groans resound from the 
sea, and yet more from the land, all and every one lament- 
ing what they held most dear. The evils resulting from 
hence are more in number than can be counted, evils all 
to be ascribed to the tongues of informers, who make 
every thing odious to you, and you, O Emperor ! odious 
to every one.i* 



* Hence to your fields, ye rustics ; hence away, 
Nor stain with grief the pleasures of a day. 

Od. b. xxi. 1. 85. Pope. 
+ The observation of Tillemont on this long and laboured defence of 
Apollonius, is just, and much to the purpose : Apollonius pretended to 
know the thoughts of men, and to foresee futurities ; nevertheless, as 
he observes, he composed a very long apology for himself, with a design 
to deliver it to Domitian : but his pretended prophetic spirit did not 
advertise hiui, that Domitian would not give him time to pronounce 
it, and that the pains he was at in composing it would be useless. 



4o5 



CHAP. VIII. 



I HAVE given the speech Apollonius prepared for his 
defence. At the close of his first speech before Domi- 
tian, I found these words of Homer, " Not thy deadly 
spear can slay me, because Lam not mortal," to which 
were added the ones preceding, on which they depended* 
After Apollonius departed from the tribunal,* the Em- 
peror behaved like one under a divine influence, and in a 
way not easy to be explained, because it was totally dif- 
ferent from the general expectation of those who were 
best acquainted with the tyrant. It was supposed he would 
have burst out into violent exclamations, and have issued 
orders through all parts of the. empire, for discovering and 
prosecuting him wherever found. — It was the very reverse ; 
it seemed as if he intended to disappoint all mens' expec- 
tations, by the conduct he adopted. Whether it was, that 
he had not sufficient power against the man, or that he 
held him in contempt, may be conjectured from what is 
to foilow. I think it will appear that he was an object 
more to excite wonder with Domitian, than contempt. 



CHAP. IX. 

THE Emperor heard another cause the same day with 
that of Apollonius. One of his cities had a matter of 



* cnnxQe — In chapter 5 — Philostratus says, that Apollonius vanished 
away out of the Emperor's presence before a great number of people : 
" But here reason bids me observe, that altho- gh it is reported to 
have been done in the presence of a great number of people, yet I 
have but the testimony of one man for the truth of it, and that man 
not a contemporary." 

2 H 



466 



dispute with a certain citizen on the subject of a will, as 
I remember. During the hearing of this cause, Domitian 
forgot not only the names of the parties, but the argu- 
ments used in the case. His questions were unmeaning, 
and his answers totally irrelavent to the cause ; all which 
argued the degree of astonishment and perplexity under 
which he laboured, so much so that his flatterers made 
him believe that nothing escaped his recollection. 



CHAP. X. 

LEAVING the tyrant in this state of mind, and shewing 
that he, who was the terror of Greek and barbarian, was 
but a play-thing in the hands of philosophy,* Apollonius 
vanished from the tribunal before mid-day, and in the 
evening of the same, appeared to Demetrius and Damis 
at PuteohVf- This accounts for his having desired Damis 
to go there without waiting for his defence. [ He had 
given Damis, however, no previous notice of his inten- 
tions, but only told him, who was so very useful to him, to 
do what best accorded with his plans. 



CHAP. XL 

DAMIS had arrived at Puteoli the day before, and had 
informed Demetrius of all that took place previous to the 



* nalyi/iw a\>9pa>vos Gswv is a sentiment of Plato's. 

t Which was above three days' journey from Rome : the dispatch 
with which he made this journey was not exceeded by his great proto- 
type Pythagoras, who was on the same day present, and discoursed 
in public, at Metapontum in Italy — and at Tauromenium in Sicily. If 
it could be proved he had found the flying arrow of Abaris, there would 
have been no difficulty on the occasion. This journey has^ been noticed 
before, of Pythagoras from Metapontum to Tauromenium. B. iv. c. 10. 



407 

hearing judgment. This account filled Demetrius with 
fears, and made him more uneasy about the fate of Apol- 
lonius, than what was becoming one of his hearers. He 
questioned Damis the following day of all that passed, 
whilst they were musing and walking together on the sea 
shore celebrated by the story of Calypso. They had 
little or no hopes of ever seeing him again, from the 
knowledge they had of the tyrant's cruelty, being felt 
among all descriptions of people. And yet out of respect 
for his character, they wished to obey his commands. 
Tired at length with their walk, they sat down in a Nym- 
phaeum,* wherein was a cistern of white marble, contain- 
ing a living spring of water which never rose above its 
margin, nor lessened by being drawn from. They talked 
of the nature of this water with less interest than usual, 
on account of the sorrow which filled their hearts, and 
then turned the conversation to what had happened before 
the trial. 



CHAP. XII. 

HERE Damis's grief breaking out afresh, he cried, O ye 
Gods ! are we never to see more our good and virtuous 
friend? When Apollonius, who had already arrived at 
the Nymphaeum, heard this, he said, you shall see him, 
or rather you have seen him. What, alive ? cried Deme- 
trius, for if dead we shall never have done lamenting 
him. Hereupon Apollonius stretching out his hand, said, 
take it, and if I escape you, regard me as an apparition 
just arrived from the kingdom of Proserpine, of the same 



* Nymphaea, were buildings adorned with statues of the nymphs, 
and abounding, as it is thought, with fountains, and waterfalls, which 
afforded an agreeable and refreshing coolness, borrowed from the 
Greeks. Adam's Rom. Ajitiquitks. 

<l H 2 



468 

kind with those which the terrestrial Gods present to the 
eyes of afflicted mortals. But if 1 bear being touched, 
I wish you would persuade Damis to think I am alive, 
and have not yet laid aside the body. Doubting no longer 
the truth of what he said, they rose, and ran to the man 
and kissed him. Afterwards they asked him if he had 
made a defence. Demetrius thought he had made none, 
from knowing that he must die, though innocent. Damis 
thought he had made a defence, but sooner than was sup- 
posed : for he never supposed it was that day. Apollo- 
nius says, my friends, I have made my defence, and we 
are victorious ; I made it a few hours ago,* whilst the 
day was verging to noon. How, said Demetrius, have 
you performed f so long a journey in so short a time r 
Think of it, as you please, answered Apollonius, but 
think not I made use either of the ram of Phryxus, or 
the wings of Dedalus ; ascribe it to a God. I am clearly 
of opinion, says Demetrius, that a God is interested in 
all you do and say, under whose direction it is your 
affairs prosper. But tell me, I pray you, the defence you 
made, and what were the several articles of accusation 
laid against you : tell me the character of your judge, with 
the questions asked, and the objections urged for and 
against, that I may relate every thing to Telesinus, who 
never ceases making inquiries. It is now fifteen days since 
Telesinus was with me at Antium, and when we were 
sitting at supper, he leant on the table and fell asleep. 
Whilst the cup J of good Genius was carrying round, he 



• Of tire truth of this fact we have no testimony except his own 
ipse dixit — and the ipse dixit of no man ever did, or can establish the- 
truth of a miracle. 

t Performed as Pythagoras' journey was from Metapontum to Tau- 
romenium, as I have observed before in speaking of his journey from 
Smyrna to Ephesus. 

$ The first cup was that of Jupiter the Saviour the second that of 
jjood Genius, and the third that of Mercury. 



460 

had a dream in which he thought he saw a fire running 
along the ground, overwhelming every thing in its way ; 
he thought he saw it sweeping away like a torrent all who 
even attempted to fly from it, whilst you alone suffered 
not with the rest, but passed safely through it as it divided 
on either side. After this dream Telesinus offered libations 
to the Deities presiding over propitious dreams, and bid 
me keep up my spirits, and hope the best. Telesinus 
thinking of me in his dream, said Apollonius, does not 
surprise me ; for 1 know he has long thought of me when 
awake. I will withhold nothing from you that passed at 
the trial, but I will not tell it here. Mid-day is past, and 
it is time to return to the city. Talking on the way is 
• pleasant,* as it stands in the place of company. Let us 
therefore set out, and as we proceed, talk of what you 
wish to know. You shall hear every thing that passed in 
court to day. You both know what took place before 
the trial ; you, Damis, from being present, and you, Deme- 
trius, from having heard it not only once, but many times, 
if I am not mistaken. I shall therefore relate what you 
do not yet know, beginning with some things that happened 
before the hearing, and with what related to my appear- 
ing naked. He then reported his speech, without for- 
getting the line of Homer beginning with " Thou shalt 
not kill me," and the identical way in which he took his 
departure from the tribunal. 



CHAP. XIII. 

WHEN he had ended, Demetrius cried out, I thought you 
out of danger, and it is only the commencement of it. 
Domitian will proscribe you, and reduce you to the dilemma 



•variocjue, viam sermone levabat.— Virg. 



470 

of not knowing where to turn for safety. But Apollonius 
bidding his fears to cease, says, I wish to God it was not 
more easy for him to take you, than it is to take me. I 
know how he is situated at this moment. He who has 
ever been accustomed to hear nothing but flattery, has of 
late heard something of a very different nature. This is 
what breaks and irritates the tempers of tyrants. But I 
have need of rest, having enjoyed none since I first en- 
gaged in this contest. Then Damis turning to Deme- 
trius, said, the opinion I had of this man's situation was 
such, that I endeavoured what I could to divert him from 
the way he took. You also advised him not to expose 
himself to so great danger. But after he was cast into 
prison, where he lay bound with chains, as I thought, and 
when I supposed his situation most critical, he assured 
me he was at perfect liberty, and without a word more, 
shewed me his leg free from the bonds. Then it was, 
indeed, I began to understand what sort of a man he was ; 
that there was something divine about him, and much 
superior to our wisdom. This is the reason why I did 
not fear, under his auspices, to expose myself to greater 
risk than I ought, and even to the loss of life. But since 
the evening is at hand, let us retire to a tavern, and take 
care of him. When Apollonius heard this, he said, I 
require nothing but sleep;* for as to every thing else, it 
is a matter of indifference whether I get them or not. 
Afterwards paying his vows to Apollo and the Sun,* he 
entered the house where Demetrius lodged, and washing 
his feet, he gave orders to Damis and his companions to 
take some refreshment, which they seemed in want of, and 
then threw himself on the bed. Instead of an hymn to 



* II avoue, says Du Pin, qu'il avoit bien besoin de repos, parceque 
depuis qu'il etoit sorti da Pretoire, il nes'etoit point repose. Si c'etoit 
par une vertu divine qu' Apollone eut 6te transported le Dieu qui lui 
avoit fait faire tant de chemin en si peu de temps, eut du aussi le pre- 
server de cette grande lassitude. 



471 

bleep, he repeated some verses of Homer,* and went to 
rest, as if the present state of his circumstances required 
no manner of solicitude whatever. 



CHAP. XIV. 

EARLY in the morning Demetrius, (whose ears were 
already filled with the imaginary sounds of the horses and 
horsemen, dispatched by the tyrant in search of Apollo- 
nius) waited on him to know where he intended to stay, 
or what he intended to do. Apollonius said, wherever I 
am, or wherever I go, neither Domitian, nor any one 
else will follow me ; I shall now sail into Greece. And 
do you suppose you will be safe there, said Demetrius ? 
that country is most illustrious ; do you think you will be 
able to elude the tyrant's grasp in a place of such notoriety, 
which you find so much difficulty in doing in a place of 
obscurity? To this Apollonius said, I want no place 
wherein to conceal myself, for if, as you think, the whole 
earth is the tyrant's, it is better to die in the sight of men, 
than live in secret. Saying this, he turned to Damis, 
and asked him if he knew of any vessel that was shortly to 
sail for Sicily ? I do, said Damis, we are at the sea-side, 
the crier is at the door, and a ship ready to sail, which 
I collect from the shouting of the sailors, and the exertions 
they are making to weigh the anchor. Let us embark in 
this vessel, cried Apollonius, and sail to Sicily, and after- 
wards to Peloponnesus. I am satisfied, replied Damis, 
let us get on board. They then took leave of Demetrius, 
who was sorrowful at their going ; they bid him keep up 
his spirits, and behave like a man who had his friends in- 

• Iliad— 14— v. 233. 

Sleep over all, both Gods and men, supreme ; 

If ever thou hast heard, hear also now 

My suit ; I will be grateful evermore. Cowper. 



472 

terest at his heart. With these words they set sail with a 
fair wind, and got over to the coast of Sicily. 



CHAP. XV. 

PASSING by Messana, they arrived on the third day at 
Tauromenium. From thence sailing to Syracuse, they got 
over to Peloponnesus by the beginning of Autumn. On 
the sixth day after crossing the bay, they came to the 
mouths of the Alpheus,* where that river pours its waters, 
still sweet, into the seas of Adria and Sicily. Landing 
here, and thinking it would be worth their while to go to 
Olympia, they went there, and spent some time in the 
temple of Jupjter, without proceeding farther from it than 
the little town of Scillus.f A rumour, constant and re- 
peated, run through Greece, that Apollonius was alive and 
at Olympia : at first little or no credit was given to the 
story ; for humanly speaking, they could never suppose he 
would escape safe from the prison into which he had been 
thrown. Various rumours were spread concerning him ; 
one was that he was burnt alive, another was that he was 
alive, but had his back stuck full of little hooks ; some 
people said he was cast into a deep pit, and others that 
he was drowned in a well. But as soon as his arrival was 
fully ascertained, all Greece flocked to see him with more 
eagerness than they ever did to the Olympic Games. 
People came there from Elis, and Sparta, and from 
Corinth situate at the extremity of the Isthmus. Athe- 



* The story of the river Alpheus passing under the sea without 
mingling itself with the salt water, and rising in Ortygia on the coast 
of Sicily, is well known. 

t Scillus is a town near Olympia, rendered illustrious by being 
made the retreat of Xenophon, where he is said to have written most 
of his works. See Mitford's Hist, of Greece. 



473 

nians, though out of the precincts of Peloponnesus, were 
found among the people who flocked to the gates of Pisa ; 
and the temple was visited by the principal Athenians and 
the youth who had come to Athens from all parts of the 
world. Some magicians were likewise there, together 
with many Beotians, and Argives, and others of some 
note from Phocis and Thessaly. Of these many had 
conversed with him before, who were all again anxious 
to acquire a new stock of knowledge, being satisfied they 
had heard a greater number of extraordinary things from 
him, than from any other person. There were others 
who had never known him, and who would have thought 
it a shame not to have heard him. They asked him how 
he had escaped from the hands of the tyrant ? Apollonius, 
wishing to avoid all vain- boasting, said only, he pleaded 
his cause, and came off safe. But as many who had just 
come from Italy, told what passed at the trial, the Greeks 
were so affected by the recital, that they proceeded 
almost to adoration, from an idea that he was a divine 
man, on account of his not exalting himself above others. 



CHAP. XVI. 

OF the young men who came from Athens, there was 
one who happened to say that the Goddess Minerva was 
extremely partial to the Emperor, which when Apollonius 
heard, he replied, take care, Sir, how you talk of such 
things at Olympia, and revile the Goddess in the presence 
of her father.* The youth without attending to what was 
said, indulged in a greater license of expression, and ob- 
served that the Goddess was right in so doing, because 



* Jupiter. 



474 

the Emperor was sovereign of the city which bore her 
name. And does he also preside as sovereign, returned 
Apollonius, at the feasts of the Panathenea ?* He silenced 
the young man, in making him see by his first answer, 
that he had but a bad opinion of the Gods if he thought 
them favourable to tyrants ; and by his second he shewed 
clearly that the Athenians would annul their decree passed 
in favour of Harmodiusf and Aristogiton, whose statues 
had been erected by them in the forum for their patriotic 
conduct, if they should now freely grant to tyrants, and 
their deputies, the honours of presiding at this festival. 



CHAP. XVII. 

DAMIS seeing there was but little money for their jour- 
neying and expenses on the way, told Apollonius of it, 
who immediately replied, " I will remedy it to-morrow." 
Next day entering the temple, he bid the priest give him 
a thousand drachmas out of the treasury of Jupiter, if he 
did not think such a sum would be displeasing to the God. 
The reply of the priest was, that it was a matter of little 
consequence to the God, who, he supposed, would ra- 
ther be uneasy at his not taking more. 



* Panathenea, an Athenian festival in honour of Minerva, the pro- 
tectress of the city of Athens. 

t The account of those two celebrated friends of liberty is well 
known. 

Quis myrte& ensem fronds reconditum 
Cantabit? ilium, civibus Harmodi 
Dilecte servatis, tenebas : 
Tu que fidelis Aristogiton. 

Ad Libertatem carmen, by Sir W. Jones. 



475 



CHAP. XVIII. 

A CERTAIN Thessaliaii, named Isagoras, in a conver- 
sation he had with Apollonius, was thus addressed, 
What do you think of the Panegyris ? # said Apollo- 
nius. I think, returned Isagoras, it is, of all human things, 
the most charming, and the most acceptable to the Gods. 
But of what materials, said Apollonius, does it consist ? 
the purport of my question is the same, as if I asked you 
of the materials of this statue, and you replied, it consist- 
ed of gold and ivory. What, said the Thessalian, can be 
the materials of a thing incorporeal? Things of many 
and various kinds, returned Apollonius. In the Panegyris 
are sacred places and holy rites, and stadia for running, and 
other scenic decorations ; in it are men of different descrip- 
tions, some from the neighbourhood, others from remote 
countries, and some even from beyond the sea. Besides, 
it is probable that many arts and inventions go to form 
it, as well as true wisdom, and poetry, and civil disputa- 
tions, and logical controversy, and the gymnastic and mu- 
sical professions, as are practised by ancient custom at the 
Pythian Games. So then it seems, O Apollonius, said 
Isagoras, that the Panegyris is a thing not only corporeal, 
but composed of more noble materials than cities ; inas- 
much as it brings into one place whatever is most excellent 
and most valuable in the world. Shall we then, Isagoras, 
continued Apollonius, consider such places of general re- 
sort as the Panegyris, in the way people* do walled cities 



* The Olympic Games drew together all Greece, and hence obtain- 
ed the name of iravnyvpit; — Panegyris. 

Quintilian says, " Panegyrim a Gratis appellari scimus Nundinas, 
festas celebritatas, et conventus." 



476 

and ships ? or must we form a different idea of them ? 
Your idea is right, said Isagoras, and I think it will be 
proper to adopt it. And yet, in my opinion, returned 
Apollonius, it will appear incorrect to him who considers 
the Panegyris in the light I do. Ships seem to me to re- 
quire the assistance of men, and men also to require the 
assistance of ships, and I do not think men would ever 
have thought of going to sea had there not been ships : in 
like manner it is that men give security to walls, and vice 
versa, walls give security to men. By parity of reasoning 
the Panegyris appears to me only a convention of men, 
and at the same time is a place where men necessarily as- 
semble; the hand of man is required to build fortified 
places, and ships, and the same hand spoils those places 
whereof we are speaking, by depriving them of their na- 
tural beauty, for it is supposed that people meet in them 
on account of that very circumstance. It is true that 
gymnasia, and porticos, and fountains, and houses, are 
constructed by human industry, as well as cities and ships. 
But the Alpheus here, and the hippodrome and stadium, 
with the groves thereunto belonging, existed before men 
did. The river gave plenty of water for the use of drink- 
ing and bathing ; the circus, a wide plain, wherein horses 
might run ; and the stadium, a place ( for the athletae to 
contend, not only in running, but in wrestling, as the 
length of the valley gives the length and limits of the sta- 
dium. From the groves the victors were supplied with 
garlands, and a shade under which to exercise themselves 
in the course. It is in this point of view Hercules con- 
sidered the place, when, attracted by its natural beauty, he 
deemed it worthy of all the games which at this day are 
celebrated in it.* 



* It is not easy to ascertain the tendency of the above dialogue on 
the Panejryris, nor to understand it, 



477 



CHAP. XIX. 

APOLLO.NIUS staid forty days at Olympia engaged irf 
disputes, in which he explained a variety of matters with 
great wisdom. After this, he said, I will for the time to 
come discourse with you, O Greeks ! in your towns, in 
your assemblies, in your sacred processions, mysteries, sa- 
crifices, and libations, for all these things require the advice 
and assistance of a good man. But at present I must go 
down into Lebadea, because I have not yet conversed 
with Trophonius, though I formerly visited his temple. 
Saying this, he set out for jVrcadia, attended by all his 
real admirers, of whom not one remained behind. There 
is at Lebadea* a cave dedicated to Trophonius, the son 
of Apollo, and only accessible to those who consult the 
oracle. The entrance to this cave is not in the temple, 
but at a little distance from it on a rising piece of ground, 
surrounded with a sort of balustrade, on which are placed 
obelisks of iron. The aperture is so narrow, that they 
who go down are hurried along in a sitting posture, dressed 
in white garments, carrying in their hands cakes made of 
honey to appease the reptiles that might assail them in de- 
scending. Of the votaries who consult the oracle, some 
are restored to the light near the entrance of the cavern, 
and others at a greater distance from it. Some make their 
appearance on the other side of Locris and Phocis, but 
most of them within the precincts of Beotia. When 
Apollonius entered the temple, he says, I have a mind to 
go down for the sake of philosophy : here the priests made 
an objection, and told the people they would never suffer 
a man who was an enchanter to examine the sacred cave ; 



* See a minute description of this cave in Pausanias, 



478 

and turning to Apollonius, put him in mind that it was only 
the wicked and impure who were to consult the oracle. After 
this he took his seat near the springs of Hercyne, and 
talked the remainder of the day of nothing but the rise of 
the oracle and the manner of consulting it, because, of all 
oracles it was the only one which gave its answers to the 
consulter himself, without their passing through any inter- 
mediate person. As soon as evening arrived, he went up 
to the mouth of the cave,* and plucking up four of the 
obelisks which surrounded the entrance of it, he descend- 
ed, wrapped up in his cloak, as if prepared for a conference. 
The God was so pleased with his conduct, that he appeared 
in person to the priests, and severely chid them for their 
treatment of Apollonius, at the same time ordering them 
to go to Aulis, where he was to issue from the cavern in 
a most extraordinary manner. On the seventh day he 
made his appearance by a way untrodden by any who had 
ever before consulted the oracle, and brought with him a 
book fitted for answering all questions ; for in going down 
he had asked Trophonius what philosophy he accounted 
the best and most pure. The little book he brought with 
him contained the opinions of Pythagoras, to which the 
oracle gave its full suffrage. 



CHAP. XX. 

THIS book is kept at Antium, which, on this account, is 
visited by the curious traveller. Antium is a maritime 
town of Italy, and the history I have given of the book 



* The oracle of Trophonius was upon a mountain, within an inclo- 
sure made of white stones, upon which were erected obelisks of brass, 
— In this inclosure was a cave, of the figure of an oven, cut out by 
art. The mouth of it was narrow, and the descent to it was not by 
steps, but by a small ladder. 



479 

was taken from the inhabitants of Lebadea. As to the 
book itself, I will tell you all I know of it. It was carried 
to the Emperor Adrian along with some letters written by 
Apollonius, (for all did not reach him) and was left in his 
palace at Antium, which, by the way, he preferred to all 
his other palaces in Italy.* 



CHAP. XXL 

ALL his followers, whom the Greeks named Apollonians, 
come to him out of Ionia, and with them, the young men 
of the parts adjacent, forming a company that, both for 
their numbers and philosophical zeal, were entitled to 
admiration. At this time the art of rhetoric lay neglected, 
and little or no attention was shewn its professors by the 
Apollonians, on account of its making only elocution its 
chief object. But people went in crowds to hear the 
philosophy of Apollonius ; and as it is said, Gyges and 
Cresus opened the doors of their treasuries to all who 
wanted money, so did Apollonius impart his wisdom to 
all who came to make inquiry, by granting to all, and 
every one, permission to ask whatever questions they 
pleased. 

CHAP. XXII. 

WHEN some people reproached him for not suffering 
his followers to accept of magisterial offices, and for 
rather promoting idleness in them ; and when by way of 



* This is a proof of the fame Apollonius enjoyed after his death, that 
the Emperor Adrian collected his letters, and kept them in his palace 
at Antium, with a book written by him, containing answers from the 
oracle of Trophonius. 



480 

raillery one told him, that he drove away his flock when- 
ever he saw the men of the law approach, he answered, 
I do it through fear of the wolves coming and attacking 
the fold. By these words he meant, that the people of 
the law were in great credit with the multitude, that by 
them they rose from poverty to riches, that their conse- 
quence was derived from the contests and divisions exist- 
ing among mankind, from which they drew their support, 
and that it was on this account he wished to keep the 
young men out of their society. Those who lived in 
familiarity with them, he rebuked sharply, as if to clear 
them of so foul an aspersion. It is true he had an old 
grudge against the attorneys, and was angry with the pro- 
fession, from seeing in the Roman prisons some sutTering, 
and even perishing in their chains ; all which he thought 
was to be ascribed rather to their wranglings and false 
eloquence, than to the cruelty of the tyrant. 



CHAP. XXIII. 

AT this time, when Apollonius philosophized in Greece, 
an extraordinary phenomenon * was seen in the heavens. 
There appeared a circle of the likeness of a rainbow 
surrounding the orb of the sun, and obscuring his rays. 
Every one understood a change of some kind or other 
was portended by it.-j* It was on occasion of this appear- 



* Philostratus seems to have borrowed a phenomenon, (not men- 
tioned by any other writer) from the 28th chapter of the second book 
of Pliny, and the explanation of the name from him who was to per- 
petrate the deed, which he intended should be prefigured by the ap- 
pearance in the text. — ZTE^avo? — corona. — a circle. 

t Cernuntur & Stellae cum sole totis diebus, plerumque et circa 

solis orbem, ceu spiceae corona?, et versicolores circuli, qualiter Augusto 
Cesare in prima Juventa Urbem intrante, post obitum patris, ad no- 
men ingens capessendum. 



481 

ance, that Apollonius was invited by the governor of 
Achaia to come from Athens into Beotia. As soon as he 
arrived, the governor told him he had heard of his know- 
ledge in things divine. And have not you also heard, re- 
plied Apollonius, of my knowledge in things human? I 
have, returned the governor, and believe it. Since, said 
Apollonius, you grant me this knowledge, I advise you 
not to search too minutely into the will of the Gods ; and 
this advice 1 give from what I know of things human. 
When the governor pressed him in flattering terms to say 
what he thought on the subject, as he was afraid of all 
things being involved in general darkness, Apollonius said, 
keep up your spirits, for some light will * arise out of 
this night. 



CHAP. XXIV. 

APOLLONIUS satisfied with having staid two years in 
Greece, during which he had not neglected the affairs of 
that country, sailed into Ionia with his whole company. 
He philosophized most part of his time whilst there, at 
Smyrna and Ephesus, without overlooking the other towns, 
of which there was not one wherein he was not well 
received; on the contrary, he was in all thought worthy 
of a reception the most flattering, on account of the ad- 
vantage he was to every one who deserved his attention. 



CHAP. XXV. 

THE time was now at hand which the Gods decreed for 
depriving Domitian of the empire. He had lately put to 



* He was wise in keeping clear of what he did not understand. 
2 I 



482 

death Clemens,*" a man of consular rank, to whom he had 
married his sister.f Three or four days after this murder, 
he had determined she should follow him. This is the 
reason why her freed-man, Stephanus, J marked out by 
the late phenomenon in the heavens, resolved, whether 
from regard § to the deceased, or love to mankind, to rid 
the world of a tyrant after the manner practised by the 
Athenians, who were such lovers of liberty. Fastening 
a dagger under his left arm, which was tied up in a band- 
age to make it look as if broken, he approached the tyrant 
as he was coming from the tribunal, and said, I wish to 
have a private conference with you, O Emperor! as I 
have matters of great moment to communicate. Not 
refusing an audience, he took Stephanus into his private 
closet, where, when they came, the freed-man said, Your 
mortal enemy Clemens is not dead as you think, but lives 
in a place I know, and is now preparing to attack you. 
At these words the Emperor uttered a loud shriek ; 
Stephanus attacked him in this confusion, and drawing the 
dagger he had concealed under his arm, he gave him || a 
wound in the thigh, which though it did not instantly kill 
him, was mortal. Domitian, who was robust of body, 
and not more than forty years of age, turned upon 
Stephanus, wounded as he was, threw him on the floor, 
and himself over him, and then endeavoured to pull out 
his eyes, striking him on the face with a golden chalice, 



* He put to death Clemens his cousin German, and his two sons, 
upon some very slight suspicion, by which violent act, says Suetonius, 
he very much hastened his own destruction. 

t Flavia Domitilla the wife of Clemens, was not the sister of Domi- 
tian, but his niece, his sister's daughter. 

X Stephanus— in Greek ir^avog— corona, a circle. 

§ Suetonius says, Stephanus was then under a prosecution for de> 
fraudiug his mistress— he was a man of great strength, and well fitted 
for the enterprise. 

jt Suetonius says he stabbed him in the groin— suffodit inguina, 



I 483 

that happened to be in the room for some sacrificial pur- 
pose, and at the same time calling on Pallas # for her 
assistance. His body-guards hearing the noise, and con- 
cluding all was not well, rushed into the closet, and find- 
ing the tyrant fainting, put an end to his life. 



CHAP. XXVI. 

ALL this happened at Rome, and all this Apollonius 
saw at Ephesus,f as if he had been present at the trans- 
action, which took place about mid -day in the Emperor's 
palace, at the time when Apollonius was walking and dis- 
puting among the trees planted in one of the xystas, near 
the town. At first he let his voice fall, as if alarmed at 
something ; he then went on conversing, but in a lower 
accent than usual, like persons whose thoughts are en- 
gaged with something different from what they are saying ; 
at last be became quite silent, as if he had lost the thread 
of his discourse. Then fixing his eyes stedfastly on the 
earth, and advancing three or four steps, he cried out, 
" Strike the tyrant,"—" Strike—" this he did, not like 
one who guessed at what was passing from seeing its 
image in a mirror, but from literally seeing it, and as it 
were promoting it. All Ephesus was astonished at what 
they heard, (for every one was present at this disputation) 
but Apollonius stopping for some time, like those who 
wait the issue of a doubtful action, at length cried out, 
" Keep up your spirits, O Ephesians! for this day the 
tyrant is killed ; J and why do I say this day ? at this very 



* His guardian Deity. 

t What would Boswell say to this second sight ? 
X Philostratus, says Crevier in his Roman Emperors, asserts this posi- 
tively as a fact, and Dion Cassius will not allow one to doubt it. We 

can 



484 

moment, whilst the words are in my mouth, I swear it by 
Minerva, the deed is done ;" after this he became silent. 
The Ephesians thought him mad, who, though they 
devoutly wished he had spoken the truth, feared to run the 
risk of giving credit to it. For my part, said Apollonius, 
I am not surprised at your hesitating about a transaction 
not yet known in all parts of Rome. But hold, " it is 
now known," exclaimed he, " for it has run through the 
whole city. Thousands at this moment believe it, and are 
leaping with joy. Twice as many credit it, yes four times 
as many, and now all Rome. The news will soon be 
here. You will be right to suspend all sacrifices till the 
arrival of the messenger. For myself, I will go and pay 
my vows to the Gods for what I have seen with my 
eyes."*' 



can have no interest, adds he, to deny it, since it does not at all ex- 
ceed the power of the Demons with whom Apollonius hetd a magic 
commerce. I shall only observe, continues Crevier, that Philostratus 
and Dion Cassius are two such credulous writers, thafr their testimony 
can be of little weight to counterbalance so great an absurdity as this, 
if it be called a miracle. 

* In Xiphilius's abridgment of Dion Cassius, the same thing is men- 
tioned in the following terms. That which appears to be more extra- 
ordinary than the rest, and which I reserved to mention in this 
place, is, that on the very day, nay, the moment Domitian was assas- 
sinatcd, as it was afterwards known upon a very exact search into the 
matter, Apollonius Tyaneus got up, whether it was in the city of 
Ephesus or elsewhere, upon a very high stone, and calling the people 
together, cried out with a loud voice, " Courage, Stephanus, courage, 
strike the murderer. Thou hast struck him. Thou hast wounded 
him. Thou hast killed him." As incredible as this fact seems to be, 
it is no less true. There might have been some accidental coincidence 
of circumstances which seemed to countenance this. 

At all events it can only be credited upon the supposition, that the 
plot against the life of the Emperor had been concerted with him, and 
the day and hour fixed for perpetrating the same. 



485 



CHAP. XXVII. 

FULL credit was not given to what Apollonius said, till 
the good news was brought by messengers, who confirmed 
by their testimony the wisdom of the philosopher. The 
death of the tyrant, with the day and hour in which it 
happened, and the murderers whom Apollonius en- 
couraged, corresponded exactly with the account given 
by Apollonius whilst holding his disputations. Thirty 
days afterwards, Nerva sent him a letter, saying he pos- 
sessed the empire by the councils of the Gods and Apol- 
lonius, which he thinks he would more easily maintain, if 
Apollonius would come to Rome, and assist him with his 
advice. The answer written by Apollonius appeared at 
the time enigmatical, which was, " we shall live together 
a very long time, in which we shall not command others, 
nor shall others command us ;"* by these words he wished 
to say that he was soon to leave this world, and that 
Nerva's reign was not to be long. In fact, his reign lasted 
but a year and four months, during which short space he 
established a character of the greatest moderation. 



CHAP. XXVIII. 

HOWEVER, not to appear unmindful of his excellent 
friend and sovereign, he wrote him a letter some short 
time after, in which he gave him advice as to the best 
mode of governing well. When finished, he sent for 
Damis, and said to him, the critical state of my affairs 
requires your assistance : the secrets contained in this epis- 



* Intimating, probably, bis expectation that they would soon live 
together in another world. 



486 



tie are addressed to the Emperor, and are of such a nature 
as can only be communicated by myself in person, or by 
you as an internuntio. Damis allows it was some time 
before he understood his artifice in this business. He says 
the letter was written in the best style, and contained 
matters of the greatest importance ; but he adds, there was 
another reason for making use of him as a messenger to 
carry it. What then was the cause of his using a particular 
address on this occasion? During his whole life he used, 
it is said, to have these words frequently in his mouth, 
" Conceal your life, and if you cannot do that, conceal 
your death." To remove Damis from his presence, in 
order not to have any witnesses to his death, was the rea- 
son of his using the pretext of sending him to Rome with 
a letter- Damis speaks of the sorrow he had at parting 
with him, though then ignorant of what was to be the 
consequence. Apollonius, who knew it well, said not a 
word of what \s generally done by people who are not to 
see each other again, so desirous was he of persuading 
Damis he would live for ever. All I find he said to him 
was, " Whenever you are alone, and give up your whole 
mind to philosophy, think of me " 



CHAP. XXIX. 

HERE ends the history of Apollonius the Tyanean, as 
written by Damis the Assyrian. Concerning the manner 
of his death, if he did die,* various are the accounts. 



* If he did die— O Philostratus ! 

Here is an imitation of the writers of the life of Pythagoras, who 
either ghre no account of his death, or say there are different accounts 
in several authors of the manner of his death. And some said he died 
in the eightieth year of his age, others in the ninetieth, and some said 

he 



487 

Damis says not a word of it. But as I wish to have my 
history complete, I cannot pass it over in total silence: 
of his age Damis says nothing, but some say he was above 
fourscore, others above fourscore and ten, and there are 
some who say his age exceeded one hundred years.* His 
body carried with it the* marks of old age, but his mind 
was vigorous and more agreeable than what even young 
people are in general. His wrinkles had something 
pleasing in them, which added a brilliancy to his looks/f- 
which is still to be seen in his effigies in the temple built 
to him at Tyana ; and what literary monuments still sur- 
vive, speak more highly of his old age than they do of the 
youth of Alcibiades. 



CHAP. XXX. 

SOME say he died at Ephesus, waited on by two hand- 
maids,;}; (for his freed-men, whom we have before spoken 
of, had already paid the debt of nature) of whom, when 
he gave the one her liberty, he was upbraided by the 
other for not thinking her entitled to the same favour. 
The observation Apollonius made on the occasion was 



he lived to be almost an hundred, others that he reached to the hundred 
and fifth year of his age. Lardner. 

To the above may be added, that Apollonius often said he would 
die without any one's knowing it, to the end , ; t may be supposed, that 
he, as Empedocles, might be thought immortal. 

* He died, it is supposed by some, at Ephesus, from the mere 
decay of nature, about the year 97, having nearly reached the great age 
of one hundred years. 

+ Philostratus never loses sight of Pythagoras, his hero's prototype, 
who was reckoned the handsomest man of the age in which he lived. 

J A most indecorous death for a philosopher to die, between two 
young damsels. 



488 

this, It is meet the one should serve the other, as it will 
be the beginning of good fortune to her. After Apollo- 
nius's death, the one became the slave of the other, who 
sold her to a slave-merchant for but a small price ; this 
merchant sold her, though she was not handsome, to an- 
other slave-merchant, who, being°a man in good circum- 
stances, fell in love with her, married her, and had by her 
sons, whom he acknowledged as his own. To return to 
Apollonius, some say he entered the temple of Minerva 
at Lindus,* and there disappeared. Others affirm his exit 
was made at Crete in a more extraordinary way than it 
was at Lindus. During his stay in Crete, it is said, he 
possessed greater authority, and was more admired than 
he ever was before, and used to enter the temple of 
Dictynna,f at unseasonable hours of the night. This 
temple is under the protection of dogs, who take care of 
the riches laid up in it. These dogs are supposed by the 
Cretans to be of a breed not inferior to that of bears, or 
other wild beasts. Whenever Apollonius entered the 
temple, these dogs did not bark at him, but received 
him with as much fawning affection as they would have 
done their most familiar friends. The priests who had the 
care of the temple seeing this, seized him at his entrance, 
and bound him, as if he was not only a magician but 
a robber, saying he had given them a sop to tame them. 
About midnight he freed himself from his chains, and 
called those who had bound him in them, to shew he 
did nothing in secret, then running to the gates of the 
temple, he found them open. As soon as he entered 



* Lindus, a city at the south east part of Rhodes, built by Circaphus, 
son of Sol and Cydippe. The Danaids built there a temple to Mi- 
nerva, surnamed Lindia. 

t Diana was worshipped in Crete, indifferently under the name of 
Dictynna and of Britomartis. 



489 

them, they shut of themselves as they had been before, 
and the temple resounded with the singing of many virgins, 
the burden of whose song was, " Leave the earth, come 
to heaven — come — come," which seemed as if they said, 
(i Proceed from earth to heaven."* 



CHAP. XXXI. 

OF the immortality of the soul, Apollonius philosophized 
even after his death, teaching that the doctrine is true, but 
that all too curious investigations concerning things so im- 
portant is to be avoided.f There happened to come 



* Ces circonstances de la mort D'Apollone (says Du Pin) se contre- 
disent, et elles ne sont toutes fondles de l'aveu meme de Philostrate, 
que sur des bruits vagues et incertains, qui ne meritent aucune 
creance. 

t But in the last place, says Bishop Parker, the historian would 
fain bid at something of his hero's appearing after death : yet he does 
it so faintly, that in the conclusion of all it comes to nothing, espe- 
cially when he tells us, that the time of his death was altogether un- 
known, and that the uncertainty of it took in no less than the compass 
of thirty years. And then, they that were so utterly at a loss, as to 
the time of his decease, and that for so long a space, were very likely 
to give a very wise account of the certain time of any thing he did 
after it. 

But how, or to whom did he appear? Why, to a young man, one of 
his followers, that doubted of the immortality of the soul for ten 
months together after his death. But how, or where? "Why, the 
young man being tired with watching and praying to Apollonius that 
he would appear to him, only to satisfy him in this point, one day fell 
into a dead sleep in the school, where the young men were performing 
their several exercises : and on a sudden he starts up in a great fright 
and a great sweat, crying out, itnQofAav rot, I believe thee — O Tyanean * 
And being asked by his companions the meaning of this transport : 
Why, says he, do you not see Apollonius ? They answer him — No : 
but they would be glad to give all the world if they could. It is true, 

says 

2 K 



490 

to Tyana a young man who was a fierce disputant, anct 
one not much inclined to listen to the truth. Apollonius 
was no longer numbered with the living : after this change, 
great was the opinion abroad of him, and no one presum- 
ed to call in question his being immortal. At this time 
there were many opinions concerning the nature of the 
soul, for numbers of young men were addicted to philoso- 
phical studies. The aforesaid youth not assenting to the 
doctrine of the immortality, said, all you who are present 
come and bear witness, that for these ten months past I 
have prayed to Apollonius to enlighten me on the subject, 
but I have prayed in vain — he, poor man, is so dead that he 
has neither appeared, nor attended to my prayers, nor 
persuaded me that he is immortal. This is the purport of 
what the young man said. Five days afterwards he re- 
sumed the same subjeet, and fell asleep in the place he 
had the conversation. Whilst he slept, the rest of the 
young men, who had been disputing with him, amused 
themselves, some in reading, and others in describing 
geometrical figures in the dust. At length the youth, still 
half asleep, started up like one suddenly seized with mad- 
ness, and whilst the sweat was running down his body, cried 
out — / believe you now. The people present asked him 
what was the matter ? What, replied he, do you not see 
there the wise Apollonius listening to our disputations, 
and chanting forth the most wonderful things of the soul ? 
Where is he ? they all cried, and why does he not shew 
himself to us, who wish more to see such a sight than the 
richest earthly possessions ? He seems to have come, said 



says he, for he only appears to me, and for my satisfaction, and is in- 
visible to all others. And then he tells them what he had said to him 
in his sleep concerning the state of souls, «f 

This poor account of a dream and vision of an over-watched boy, is 
all that this great story affords as to the resurrection of Apollonius. 



! b v% *l 



(W 



491 

the youth, for the sake of discoursing solely with me con- 
cerning what I was unwilling to believe. Listen then to what 
he speaks, as it were from a tripod. " The soul is im- 
mortal — immortality does not belong to you, but to the 
goodness of Providence. After the dissolution of the 
body, the soul like a mettlesome courser, when freed from 
all restraint, mingles in thin air, impatient of the servile 
state to which it was subject. But how do these things 
affect you, who say that the soul does not survive the de- 
struction of the body ? why search into such matters you 
who are like unto the brutes ?" — So luminous was the ora- 
cle which issued from the tripod of Apollonius, declaring 
the Arcana of the soul, in order that men fully conscious of 
their own nature might chearfully go wherever their Fates 
direct. I do not remember ever having seen any tomb 
or cenotaph raised to the honour of the man, though I have 
gone over most part of the known world, and met in all 
countries with men who told wonderful things of him. 
Tyana is held sacred, not being under the jurisdiction* of 
governors sent from Rome, and Emperorsf have not re- 
fused him the same honours paid to themselves. 



* At what time Tyana received this privilege is not known : when 
Aurelian took the town — Gibbon says, a superstitious reverence in- 
duced him to treat with lenity the countrymen of Apollonius the phi- 
losopher. 

t The Emperor Adrian made a collection of his letters, which he de- 
posited in his palace at Antium. Caracalla honoured him, and built a 
temple to him as a hero,— and he was in such estimation with Alexan- 
der Severus that he had his statue in his private closet. 

TlLLEMONT. 

And now upon the review of this whole history, concludes Bishop 
Parker, it seems evident to me, that this man was so far from being 
endowed with auy extraordinary divine power, that he does not deserve 
the reputation of an ordinary conjurer : for though Huctius has taken 
some pains to prove him so, yet he gives no evidence of it besides the 

opinion 



X 






492 

opinion of the common people ; and if that were enough to make a 
conjurer, there is no man of an odd and singular humour (as Apollonius 
affected to be) who is not so thought of by the common people. And 
therefore, when he was accused for it before Domitian, the Emperor 
upon coming to hear the cause, slighted both him and his accuser, and 
dismissed him the court for an idle and fantastic fellow. And it is ma- 
nifest, continues the bishop, from the whole series of his history, that 
he was a very vain man, and affected to be thought something extraor- - 
dinary : and so Wandered all the world over in an odd garb to be gazed 
at and admired, and made himself considerable in that age by wit, im- 
pudence, and flattery ; of all which he had a competent share. And 
for his wonder-working faculty which he would needs pretend to, he 
fetched that as far off as the East Indies, that is, the farthest off as he 
thought from confutation : and yet the account which he has given of 
those parts is so grossly fabulous, that that alone convicts his whole life 
of imposture and impudence. From whence it appears, says Dr. 
Lardner, that his history, as told by Philostratus, is fabulous, and not 
to be relied on, and that Apollonius was not so considerable a person 
as some have imagined. And I hope I may say, concludes Lardner, 
that these observations of Dr. Parker do in a great measure confirm 
those which have been before proposed by me. In fine, the history of 
Apollonius which is now offered to the public, may be admitted, say 
the liberal compilers of the New Biographical Dictionary, in concur- 
rence with other collateral evidence, as sufficient testimony, not only 
that such a man as Apollonius existed, but that he was an eminent 
philosopher of the Pythagorean sect, who travelled as his master did, 
through almost every part of the civilized world, exhibiting in his own 
character, an example of rigid morality, teaching lessons of moral 
wisdom, and doctrines of speculative philosophy ; at the same time 
attracting popular attention and reverence by pretending to superna- 
tural powers. They add, that it is not easy to separate the impostures 
of the man from the tales of his biographers ; but from the whole nar- 
rative just perused, I think with them, that there can be little or 
no room to doubt, that after the example of Pythagoras, he practised 
the arts of delusion, and that though with wise men he was a philoso- 
pher, among the vulgar he was a magician. 



FINIS. 



J. M'Creery, Printer, 
Black-Horse-court, Fleet-street, LondoB. 



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